The Way of the Hat and Wave
by Jesachi
Summary: Nami has run away to fight her own demons. Luffy gives chase. What starts as a simple retrieval mission quickly swallows them in a wave of love, loss and adventure that leaves our captain and his navigator questioning their relationship. Lunami pairing.
1. Chapter 1

~Prelude/Chapter One~

"_I'm about to lose my mind… you've been gone for so long. I'm running out of time. I need a doctor, call me a doctor. I need a doctor, doctor, to bring me back to life."~Eminem_

Luffy pushed open the door to the bar. Not a single head turned in his direction, the patrons hardly paying attention nor caring that another soul just walked in. In fact, it was strange to him to have no one jumping up and shouting "That's Straw Hat Luffy!" but he had his face mostly shadowed by the hood over his head. He hadn't wanted to wear it, but Hancock had insisted, that crazy woman. She did have a point, he supposed. After all, his bounty had climbed considerably after the Whitebeard War and then he disappeared for two years. Everyone probably thought he was dead. Surely, had he been exposed, someone would have caused a ruckus.

He wasn't here to make a scene though. Silvers Rayleigh had suggested he get a bite to eat and listen to hear if any of his crew was going to show up here at the Sabaody Archipelago. He had already received a letter from Zoro that the crew was to pick the swordsman up at Kuraigana Island and Brook had sent ahead that he was taking some extra time in another kingdom, but besides those two, Luffy assumed everyone would meet here, as planned.

He plopped himself in a barstool and ordered some grub from the bartender. As he was eating, a conversation taking place in the corner caught his attention and he tuned his hearing to listen in.

"Is it really their ship?"

"For sure. That lion head is hard to miss."

Luffy smirked. Eavesdropping the conversation a little further yielded that the Sunny-Go was docked on Grove 41. That was going to be a long walk from where he was, on Grove 12.

He paid for his meal and slipped out of the bar. No one watched him go.

* * *

><p>She was so relieved to be back. It felt so surreal, the details on how she even managed to return to Sabaody Archipelago a little fuzzy.<p>

But she was here now, standing on the docks, staring up at the Thousand Sunny like a long forgotten dream. The thought had crossed her mind once or twice in the past month that she might not ever see the ship or the crew again…

Feeling like her heart was going to burst, Nami flipped her long copper waves over her shoulder and grasped the ladder to climb aboard. Her sandals hit the Adam Wood and she glanced around, realizing that no one was here yet. Franky was in charge of the ship, but she assumed that he must've left to restock or something.

Restless and nervous, she paced the ship, her footsteps hollow and lonely as she waited for the rest of her nakama to finally reunite. She missed them more than she thought she could bear and more times than not over the past two years, she found herself wishing for their courage to get her through her training. And when her training was done…

She laid her hand over the left breast pocket of her button down shirt. No. She was stronger now. She had to be.

Everything was as they had left it two years and three days ago. The morning they stepped off the ship in order to find Hachi's friend to coat it for them, she had made her bunk and worked on a map in the library. The ink bottle was where it had been, capped and to the right hand side of the desk, her tools and instruments aligned perfectly next to it.

No, that wasn't right…

There, on the floor under her desk, her favorite pen. She remembered now. She'd been in the middle of a fine detail when Luffy barged in, saying that they spotted the islands and he startled her so bad that she dropped the pen and blotted her map. Irate, she chased him out of the library to his delight, laughing at her.

She reached her fingers out and traced the blot spot. Luffy…

She remembered crying all night when she found out that Portgas D. Ace had been killed at Marineford. All she had thought about was Luffy and how much he was suffering. Or if he was dead. She hadn't wanted to wait to see if his obituary was in the news. Once she had pulled herself together, she went so far as to make some crazy attempts to leave the island to get to him, before the paper came in. She had called him some awful names.

God help her, where did she get off having a little stupid crush on her silly and stupid captain? She was twenty years old, for crissake! And he was… he was… he was just…

She stooped down and picked up her pen, needing something to do suddenly so that she couldn't finish that thought. Just as she placed the writing utensil back in its home, she heard a light thud outside on the deck.

"OIIIIIIIII! ANYONE HERE YET!"

Her heart skipped a beat before starting an erratic rhythm on her chest. Luffy. That was Luffy's voice.

Nami rushed out to the deck and there he was, almost like time hadn't passed, his presence so normal-looking on the ship. Except, it had and it was evident from the way he stood, taller, broader. His face had lost what remained of his youthful roundness and his hair was just a little longer, brushing into his eyes. He wasn't the skinny, snot nosed kid from two years ago. He was… he was a man.

He hadn't spotted her yet. She watched in stunned silence as he peeled off the jacket he was wearing and draped it over the chair on the lawn. And when he turned back around, she gasped, both her hands flying to her mouth.

His long sleeved button down was open and on his chest was the largest scar she'd ever seen on the rubber man. A huge X, like someone had tried to slice out his insides with a chainsaw. What had he been through during that war?

He snapped his head up and turned to face her, as if he sensed her presence. A huge smile lit up his face and she felt her heart drop into her stomach, "Oi! Nami!"

Seeing him, seeing that ravaged scar across his body, knowing that he must have nearly died during the Whitebeard War, raised some emotions in her that she didn't know she was keeping so locked up. She pointed her finger at him, her other hand on her hip, fire in her eyes. The smile dropped from his face as he regarded her swift change in attitude.

"YOU!" she growled, "You… how dare you! After everything this crew has been though together, you just abandon us and expect us to stay where we are and not come to you when you were in danger! We had to wait two years for you! You are a selfish… a selfish bastard! Moron!" she walked right up to him and poked him in the chest, hard, "That's NOT what a good captain does!"

He blinked at her for a solid ten seconds while she took a few calming breaths. Then, he did something not so unexpected.

He laughed at her. Not just laughed, but leaned over, one arm over his stomach and his other hand braced on his knee. Her anger dissipated as she watched him wind down to chuckles. _Something's… different about him. _Also, up close like this, she realized just how tall he was, at least six inches taller than her.

"You didn't change, Nami," he finally said. His voice was even just a little bit deeper too. He grabbed the straw hat off his head and plopped it on hers, his hand resting on the back of her head. He leaned down to her eye level and smiled. She forgot how to breathe. He was so close to her, "Not – one – bit."

* * *

><p><em>AN:_

Final Thought from Nami:

_I'm going to lose my mind…_

I need to put a disclaimer here… Goldensomething and I wrote this story post-Tikka/Zoro but before we finished the One Piece episodes. I believe we were somewhere around Enies Lobby/Thriller Bark. Since then, we have caught up to the present. That being said, there are some inconsistencies that I have done my best to correct and edit without compromising the entire story. So please, so the sake of enjoying this literary adventure of love, loss and danger, suspend your disbelief and simply go with the flow.

Also, here's my hash: this story was written in "roleplay" format, meaning that Goldensomething and I each played a main character and told the story from their respective perspectives. In order to preserve the raw magic that is one of the BEST roleplays we've ever done, little format editing has taken place. As always, enjoy. :D

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is mine.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combine Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	2. Chapter 2

~Chapter Two~

Nami hadn't returned yet.

The evening had worn on; Tikka was unconscious in the medical room and Chopper was holed up in there with her. It became apparent as the sun set that Nami wasn't going to be back before dark and yet, no one on the ship said a thing. Everyone just… waited. Sanji cooked dinner. Franky tinkered on the cargo hold. Robin read a book on the lawn. Zoro kept going in and out of the medical ward. The place was tense, to say the least.

By morning, there was still no sign of her. A rescue mission had been organized. Franky and Robin set off to search the North Shore, Usopp, Sanji took the south half and Luffy went wherever the hell he wanted starting with the town. Zoro stayed behind with Tikka and Chopper. At noon, they met back at the ship. No sign of Nami anywhere. No one believed she was kidnapped, not even Sanji. Her weather manipulation was powerful; too powerful for her to be attacked and kidnapped without someone noticing strange weather patterns. It was a hard pill to swallow the idea of her leaving the crew voluntarily though.

The fact remained that she was gone. The rest of the crew was convinced that she wasn't coming back. Luffy didn't want to believe that; didn't want to believe that Nami ran away. But the way she'd been acting lately, all squirrelly and shit. Something was going on with her.

He headed into the village to search for her – again – her wanted poster in his pocket. Every single store he went by, he dashed in and flashed her picture.

"Have you seen this woman?"

"Have you seen Nami?"

Every response: "Nope, no idea."

He was out of breath and running out of daylight. The last strip of shops lay ahead of him, bordering the coast. A thought occurred to him in an instant. If she wasn't to be found on the island, perhaps she got her own skiff and left? She had the navigational skills and log pose and the gold. It wasn't such a farfetched idea…

Luffy raced down the line and burst into the shop so hard that the shipwright jumped right out of his skin, "Well, good evening, young man! You sure startled me there!"

He walked right up to the counter and slammed Nami's wanted poster onto the wood, "This woman bought a skiff from you, right?"

"Her? Ah yes, sweet thing she was, drove a hard bargain though."

"You've seen her? Did she say where she was going?"

The old man laughed, "I asked her and she said the Isle de los Muertos! Of course, it's just a myth, but she had such a straight face that she really had me going there for a minute!" the old man shook his head with a grin.

Isle De Los Muertos? Sounded like a hell of an adventure, "Do you know where she went from here?"

"I took her boat to the west dock and launched her from there. She headed due west, straight."

Luffy nodded solemnly, "Alright, thanks, old man!"

* * *

><p>He was utterly lost.<p>

Not just utterly; completely and irrevocably lost. He had no fucking clue where he was. He tried to sail as straight west as he could, but a damn storm blew him off course. And now he was sailing around aimlessly. He hoped luck would hold out and he would run into Nami eventually.

His nakama had been unwilling to let him rendezvous alone, simply for the fact that he and water weren't necessarily on speaking terms. When that storm blew in, he took every single precaution that he could think of; currently, he had a rope connecting him to the mast and three life preservers around his body. He would not drown before he found her.

He was hunched over the wheel of the Mini Merry, steering through the post-storm currents. He had a one track mind – find Nami and bring her back. He wasn't even concerned as to why she left, really. Well, alright, he was a little curious, but only because she was acting so strange for the past month. At times, she was really quiet and reserved and she'd retreat to her study for hours on end, which wasn't abnormal, but the lack of presentation was. She stopped warning the entire crew to shut up and be quiet before she disappeared. She just… did. She just acted so out of character.

He was worried that she was in some kind of trouble. He hadn't really been surprised that she upped and left, because he was kinda expecting her to run. She'd looked flighty for a couple of days beforehand.

Luffy peered through his spyglass at the horizon, checking for boats or skiffs or anything. Something caught his eye and he paused, excitement rippling through him.

"Land!" he exclaimed to no one but himself, jumping to his feet. The life rings around his body made him sway a little unsteadily. He adjusted the sail and waited for a strong tail wind to steer him towards the island. So lucky! He was just about to run out of food too! He'd TOLD Sanji to pack him EXTRA. But the cook insisted that he had enough food to last a normal person a week.

Luffy didn't have a normal person appetite.

* * *

><p>Sweat beading her brow, Nami had to bend her knees in order to get the heavy bag of fruit over her shoulder. Even then, she stumbled as she started back towards her ship. Mentally, she cursed. She was getting even weaker, but she only had so many of the pills left... she was going to have to start rationing them even more soon.<p>

She was going to have to get used to this sickness... and push through! Positive thoughts, Nami! She tried to bolster herself as she trekked through the forest back to her skiff.

She'd landed on this island after strong currents from a storm directed her here. She'd been on the Grand Line long enough to learn that some storms rotated around particular islands, drawn by the currents naturally attracted to their strong magnetic pull.

Luckily, this island had food on it. It was uninhabited, which was perfect for a lone traveler like herself. Her body wanted to stay on this island and lay on the beach, but she was already cutting it close. That is, IF she was on the right course. Plus, she couldn't risk the log pose resetting. It still pointed to Fishman Island.

Oh! Why did she always get herself involved in impossible situations like this?

The jungle thinned, and soon she was stepping out onto the bright beach, her ship in sight. Her legs were shaking by the time she reached the boat and dropped the bag of fruit into it. She hopped inside, pulled out a prickly looking fruit that had a succulent inside, and sank to her knees to lean against the boat.

Her head fell back against the hull, her eyes closed. She didn't have the energy to watch her hands as she peeled the skin off of the fruit. In fact, she didn't even bother lift her head when she brought the fruit up to her lips to take a bite. It was only when she was halfway through the fruit when she opened her eyes, and found that the hand holding the fruit was shaking.

Her breath hitched. So soon? Fear tightened her belly for a moment... the symptoms were starting sooner and sooner. She tried to stay calm as she fished around in her pocket for the pills. From the few leads she'd managed to gather over the past few weeks, she figured the pills should last her till she got back to Redgrove Island, but she couldn't be sure. She couldn't risk running out of them... she'd already been gone longer than she'd expected. Longer than he expected… And she still had to go to the Isle de los Muertos. She couldn't be sure how long it would take to find the Chalice of Youth.

But she'd do anything for it, anything to get away from him, even this suicide mission.

Her heart rate was already speeding up by the time she popped the pill into her mouth, so she blew out a long sigh, let her head fall back against the ship, and waited for the pill's effects to make things better. As soon as she was able, she would cast off.

* * *

><p>Land. Land. Land. LAND!<p>

He couldn't wait. He could get off the boat and explore the island, get some food. Maybe there would be some meat too…

As he got closer to the coastline, he noticed that there was a boat moored on the sand. A sense washed over him, a feeling he had come to associate with his Haki, particularly his Kenbunshoku Haki – his sixth sense. He could feel Nami before he could actually see her. Besides, how many other small skiffs would be in this area? Better yet, how many would have the confidence to sail on the Grand Line in a boat as small as a one-man skiff? You'd either have to be really brave… or a great navigator.

He hit the shallows and launched himself off the boat into the sand and reached back to pull the Mini Merry up onto the sand. Once the ship was safely up out of the tide, he jogged over to the little skiff. A flash of copper and the top of her head was what confirmed it for him.

"NAMI!" he hollered in ecstasy, "I found you!" He hauled his ass up over the edge of her boat, making it rock precariously. He stopped short when he got a good look at her. She was pale and trembling slightly and she looked like she might be running a small fever, "Whoa, you don't look so good. You alright?" he crouched down to her level and cocked his head to the side.

* * *

><p>Nami was just considering getting up and shoving off when a voice split the air and made her blood go cold with dread. She hoped she was hallucinating, but when Luffy suddenly appeared in front of her and crouched down, there was no denying it.<p>

Luffy had come after her, and found her.

"You alright?"

She was staring at him in open shock that she forgot she was in the throes of slowly receding withdrawal symptoms. She was so shaken that she could only stare at him for a moment, unsure of how to react. Her first instinct was to tell him what was wrong, like she'd wanted to every time he gave her that look which said he knew something was up, even if he didn't know what.

But this wasn't a problem that could be solved by brute strength, and in the category of subtlety and strategic planning... Luffy sucked.

So while she may want to burst into tears and beg him to fix everything, he simply wasn't the answer. The less Luffy knew the better.

Forcing on a smile and focusing enough to stop shaking, Nami straightened and pushed all of the symptoms inside, even if it made them harder to deal with. It was only a matter of time before the pill kicked in, and then she'd be fine for a little while longer.

"Luffy!" she finally exclaimed, pulling herself up enough to look around to see how the hell he'd gotten here, only to spot the Mini Merry a few yards away. "I... what are you doing here?" she asked, whirling around to face him, brow furrowed. She ignored his question. She was angry at him, angry for putting her in this position of having to debate with herself. How was she going to get rid of him now? Did she even want to get rid of him? She forced the anger in her voice down, and tried again. "How did you find me?"

He backed away from her when that angry tinge crept into her voice, a habit he had from many years of being whapped on the top of the head by her. What was she so upset over? He'd come to find her after she ran away from the crew! No one left without his approval. And he did not approve.

"I've come to take you back," he reasoned calmly, sitting cross legged on the opposite side of the little boat from her. His eyes flipped from her face to the huge canvas bag between them and for a moment, his face lit up, "Oooh, food!" he reached in and grabbed a big prickly like fruit from the top and bit into it, skin and all. It was bitter. He made a face and decided to peel the skin off first.

She tempered some of the anger in her voice to ask him how he found her and Luffy turned his gaze back up to her, sweeping over her. He still had a feeling in his stomach that something wasn't right with her. She was being all fake Nami on him, what she did when she was being secretive. Like, trying to be calm and reasonable when she wasn't in situations like this. Ever.

"I dunno. Got lucky, I guess," he replied simply, nimbly peeling the fruit, "I heard you went due west, so I followed as straight as I could, but some stupid storm whipped through and blew me all off course. And I ended up here." With his fruit fully skinned, he could eat it now.

He regarded her again and this time, a thought occurred to him, "So wait, you're on some big adventure, right? The shipwright said you mentioned some island you were going to. I'm coming with you." His voice was straight, leaving zero room for argument.

* * *

><p>Instant denial rose in her chest, but she cut it off with a thought. Yes, Luffy would be disastrous to bring to Redgrove Island, but…<p>

She still had to get the Chalice, and he could be pretty useful against immeasurable odds. The island she needed to find wasn't called the Island of Death for nothing… Afterwards, she'd ditch him and head to Redgrove, but he could expedite the process of obtaining her prize, which, in turn, would yield more time to get to Watcher's Island and less time dealing with the withdrawal symptom and a better chance at surviving this grueling mess.

Her eyes darted nervously to her own shadow, a quick flicker of movement before she returned her gaze to Luffy and nodded. "Alright, but you take orders from me on this adventure, or the deal's off." Her eyes lingered on his face for a second longer than she should have, but the sight of him, despite the fact that it messed with her plans, was extremely comforting. Luffy always made her feel like anything was possible... and while she knew that her chances of getting out of this situation were less than great, she was somehow much happier that he'd be around. Until she ditched him. Which surprisingly sat wrong with her, considering she'd throw just about anyone under the bus to save her own skin.

With that, she pushed herself to her feet, starting to feel better now, and turned away from him to face their boats. "We'll use the Mini Merry to travel, and we'll tow my skiff to sleep in and to keep our supplies. We HAVE to leave now, Luffy... time is very important for this adventure. It's... it's like a race!" She said, turning to face him again with a grin on her face. She knew just what to motivate him, and this way he wouldn't question why she needed to get there fast.

He didn't need to know about the poison.

"The faster we get to this island and get the Chalice, the better," she added, and started pushing her ship towards the water, sliding it over the sand until the surf gently picked it up. "You should go get more of these fruits, too... I only picked enough for me. Here." she tossed a bag over her shoulder at him.

* * *

><p><em>AN:_

Final Thought from Luffy:

_Something's off about you, Nami…_

This chapter confuse you a little? It's a sequel to a series. Read "The Way of the Sword and Rose" by Goldensomething with Zoro/Tikka (OC) pairing. Exact same writing style and who doesn't love sexy, baffled by love Zoro? With a little Lunami mixed in. :D

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy/Zoro:_ Jesachi

_Nami/Tikka:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	3. Chapter 3

~Chapter Three~

"_If I lay here, if I just lay here… would you lie with me and just forget the world?" Snow Patrol_

They set off in the Mini Merry, towing behind Nami's skiff. He'd gathered a surprising amount more of the fruit and even managed to construct a fishing rod so that he could have some meat. He couldn't live without meat.

That was what he was currently involved in; fishing. It was night time, the sky was littered with stars and the moon was round enough that he could see just fine. Nami was fast asleep in the skiff, claiming that she was tired from all the sailing and told Luffy to sail straight. So sail straight he did. And fish.

He glanced from the dark ocean to her, sleeping in the skiff with a blanket covering her up to her chin. He was excited to be on an adventure with her. The fact that they were on a time limit of some kind was even cooler. He didn't remember the last time he and Nami did anything together. Definitely not since they all reunited a few weeks ago. She'd been so strange lately. He still couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong with her and now, in the silence of the middle of the night, he had nothing to distract him from not thinking about it. He made a mental note to ask her again if something was bothering her when his fishing pole yanked violently into the water.

He barely sucked in an exclamation at the idea of catching anything, remembering at the last second that she was sleeping. With a strong yank, he hauled a HUGE fish out of the water, easily half the size of his body. He practically quivered with excitement as it flopped around on the deck. Oh man… that fish was going to taste sooooo good…

It hit him with a shot of flushed disappointment that on this tiny skiff, he had nothing to cook the damn fish with. With a vicious curse and a pout, he tossed the best catch of his life back into the ocean. He loved meat… he wasn't desperate enough to eat it raw.

Instead, he snatched some fruit out of the bag and sat down in the back seat of the Merry and proper his feet up on the other one. Man, he didn't want some sticky fruit. He peeled it with some violent movements, mulling over how fabulous some of Sanji's filleted fish would taste right now with some of that mystery sauce all over it and maybe some seagull soup on the side… anything living. He wanted to eat anything that once had a shadow.

"Stupid fruit…" he pouted, tossing the skin into the ocean and staring up at the starry sky. He wished Nami was awake so that he could have someone to talk to. Maybe he should just eat his fruit and get some sleep. The skiff would be fine for a couple of hours.

Something bright streaked across the sky and he sat up straighter, craning his neck back to look. Another one, a shooting star, blazed across the velvet blackness of the sky. He gasped in surprise, watching as the sky was lit up by them. One after the another. What did Robin call these things? Meteor showers, that's right.

He turned to look over his shoulder. Nami should see this. Navigators loved the stars. He stretched an arm out and nudged her shoulder gently, "Nami!" he called softly. When she didn't stir right away, he raised his voice, "Nami! Get up!"

* * *

><p>Something was waking her up, but her body was desperate to recover from all of the stress she was putting it through, so it was a struggle. She blinked blearily, the haze of sleep pulling away agonizingly slowly.<p>

"Nami!"

It was just Luffy. She made a sound of denial, and tried to roll over to go back to sleep, but he persisted, so she peeled her eyes open and peered over the edge of the ship. Flashes of falling stars lit up the night sky, and her breath caught.

A meteor shower.

"Oh wow…" she murmured, dragging herself up from the boat, and clambering over the edge and into the seat next to him, bringing the blanket with her. Now that she was awake, she became aware of the chill in the night air. She started shivering, even with the blanket pulled tight around her.

Scooting down in the seat, she huddled in on herself to try and be as warm as possible as she let her head fall back so she could gaze up at the stars. "It's so... beautiful…" she murmured, to no one in particular.

She became aware of the heat that Luffy was emitting, and shifted closer to him, just a little, to try and warm herself up. They rarely had time to themselves, and she was struck by how... comfortable... she felt with Luffy.

"Yep. It's pretty cool," he replied. He flipped his eyes to the side when she pulled the blanket tighter around herself and shivered, "You cold?" he asked her, "Here, I'll warm you up," he scooted closer to her and slung an arm around her shoulders to pull her in close to him so that she was nestled under his shoulder. He ran his hand up and down her arm to make a little heat via friction.

It was so comfortable, sitting here with her in the Mini Merry and watching the falling stars. While he generally got along with everyone and every personality, he always thought that it was easiest to be around Nami. When he wasn't provoking her, she was fun to be around. She was smart and he relied on her the most out of the whole crew because she was the only one that could navigate the Grand Line. The rest of his nakama would be lost without her. He wondered how they were faring with Tikka and Zoro in charge.

"So…" he started, reaching up to trace a star as it fell with the tip of his finger, "Tell me about this island we are going to. Is it scary and full of monsters and other awesome stuff? You said something about a Chalice. Are we on a treasure hunt?" the name of the island suddenly came to him, "Isle of the Dead? So cool, it must be filled with dead stuff, right?" he turned to glance down at her and a manic smile lit his face, that expression that clearly said "I'm dying for adventure".

* * *

><p>Luffy slid an arm over her shoulders and pulled her in tight to his body, and Nami felt heat rising in her cheeks, grateful that it would be hidden by the night. She was instantly more aware of him, of his scent, the feel of his body, everything.<p>

With the stars falling down and Luffy's soft voice, she could feel herself being lulled into a sense of... perfection. Her eyes stung with tears that didn't fall. The moment was so perfect... so comfortable, and it made her was MORE. Why did she have to get a mondo crush on her captain?

And now her life was spiraling out of control again, the way it had with Arlong, and this time Luffy wasn't going to be able to save the day. Not with Watcher's devil fruit powers and the children that were at stake.

If it had been just her life... then she would have already begged Luffy for help, but she couldn't risk others.

Thinking about Watcher made her stomach clench, so she shoved her thoughts aside and decided to enjoy the moment. It was one of the last she'd have with him... she needed to make it count.

So she tilted her head into him and nestled herself closer, knowing he was too clueless to think anything of it asides getting warm. "Thank you, Luffy…" she murmured quietly. Figuring he wouldn't feel it, since his jeans were so baggy anyway, the hand that wasn't holding the blanket to her slowly slid down and curled around the material of his pants pocket; it was her way of being able to hold Luffy's hand, just once, under a starry sky.

Then he started asking about the island, and she figured she could be selective in what she told him. Her voice was soft as she began telling him about the legends of the cup of eternal youth, and how the island is supposed to be inescapable.

"I don't know too much else; the legends are scarce, but apparently the Chalice of Youth and the water from the Fountain of Youth, when used together, will grant immortality. It's supposed to be in a cave on the island, where the spring-water wells up eternal. Apparently most people die before they even get to the cup. I'm not sure what we'll find there, but probably some scary things, and definitely an adventure," her lips curved into a gentle smile as she said the words. He loved adventures.

Her eyes slid from the sky to watch the profile of his face for a moment, realizing with a pang that she loved his smile, his crazy need for adventure no matter how scary. Above them, a burst of meteors rained down at the same time, and in her heart, she made a secret wish that she barely admitted even to herself, one that involved a certain straw hat captain.

* * *

><p>The more she told him about the island, the more adrenaline pumped through him. This was going to be the best adventure ever. And island all about death and a secret, highly coveted fountain of youth. It was going to be epic.<p>

She leaned in closer to him and he felt her hand curl out of the blanket and into the loose material of his pants near his pocket. At first, it struck him as strange. But the longer she stayed like that, oddly, it became more comfortable. He felt closer to her, even though she was already pretty close to him, with his arm around her and everything. But it anchored her to him and it just made it feel like she was more living and breathing, which was strange too, because he KNEW that she was living and breathing. It just made her feel more real to him.

Eventually, she fell quiet and so did he, watching the meteor shower. After a few more minutes, the stars began to wind down and the shower was coming to an end. He called out to her, bumping his shoulder to get her attention, but it occurred to him that she was out cold. Fast asleep against him, the blanket up under her chin and her face tucked into it. Her bangs fell over her eyes.

He smirked and shifted carefully until he could pick her up easily. She didn't stir. That's what happened when you lived with a bunch of boys, he supposed. You learned to sleep through just about anything.

He deposited her in the little skiff and made sure she was all tucked up with blankets so that she didn't get cold again. Stifling a yawn with his hand, he moved back over to the Merry and checked that the helm was straight and for extra precaution, he tied it down for the rest of the night. Then, he gum gummed over to the skiff to sleep as well.

The space was tight, no bigger than a double bed and Nami was already occupying half of it. He wasn't cold so he took the extra blanket and balled it up for a pillow instead. There were literally mere inches between the two of them; he could feel the heat of her body next to his. It was comforting; he was very accustomed to sleeping in a room full of bodies in general.

_A/N:_

I've had some people asking some questions about this story in regards to its timeline. I will give one last explanation: this story is part of a series. The first story in the series is Zoro/Tikka (OC) called _The Way of the Sword and Rose_. However, Luffy/Nami's story occurs independently from Zoro/Tikka's for the most part. The only thing you may have missed reading this story first is Nami's decision to run away. The _why, how or what_ had not been discussed yet. Happy reading!

Final Thought from Tikka:

_Don't worry. We're just fine over here, captain!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	4. Chapter 4

~Chapter Four~

Nami woke feeling very warm, with a deep-sated feeling a safety. It had been so long since she'd felt like that in the morning that she blinked, blearily, up at the rising sun in slight confusion.

She then realized that she was not sleeping alone. With half of an arm and practically his whole leg draped over the blankets that covered her, Luffy was dead asleep almost wrapped around her.

For a full three seconds, all she could think about was how natural and happy this felt. Then she realized that she was basically cuddling with her captain, and her stomach erupted into butterflies and heat rose fast to her cheeks.

"Luffy!" She exclaimed loudly enough to wake him, and sat up quickly, shoving his arm and leg off of her as hurriedly pulling herself to her feet. Last night felt like a dream, a wonderful dream, but this was reality, and she had to face the real world now. And in the real world, Luffy was a clueless captain and she was a woman with a death sentence over her head. "You sleep like a monkey," she muttered to him as she hurried over to where their boats were connected, and swiftly leapt over and into the Mini Merry.

Space... space, and normalcy. That's what was needed right now.

And also... a pill. Her hand was just starting to shake when she pulled the packet out, and extracted one of the precious little pills. She popped it into her mouth as her eyes searched the horizon. They'd drifted a little off course, but as her eyes kept sweeping, she realized, with a start, that an island lay in the distance.

Hope gripped her chest, and she pulled out her spyglass to peer more closely at it. Her breath caught in her chest. It looked so promising. Dire clouds hung over the island in an unnatural way, darkening it ominously. "Luffy! That might be it!" she cried out, pointing and looking over her shoulder and back at her captain.

* * *

><p>He slept like the dead and didn't realize he was practically sleeping on Nami until she hollered at him and literally tossed him off her. He hit the side of the boat with an "oonmph" and sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes.<p>

He'd heard that he was… what had Ace called it? An "active" sleeper. He moved around a lot. He was never aware of it.

"Sorry," he muttered, stretching his arms above his head with a gigantic yawn. He snagged a fruit… or three… out of the bag and was halfway through the first one when Nami exclaimed, "This could be it!"

"Where!" he shouted back, mouth full of exotic fruit. He scrambled over to the Mini Merry and grabbed the spyglass from her, his eyes hitching on the unidentifiable clump on the horizon. Dark clouds swirled about it, flashing with lightning and an excited chuckle escaped him.

"Oh yeah, that looks deadly," he whistled, handing her back the glass and whipping up to sit on the masthead, eyes shaded against the early sun.

As they got closer, the waters became more treacherous. He latched onto one of the ram horns on the masthead, "This is going to be great!" he mused, his eyes bouncing around to everything he could see. Shadowy clouds, the distant rumble of thunder, the swirling eddies in front of them…

"Nami, what's going on there?" he called, pointing at the water surrounding the island, "Looks…" scary… terrifying… "… awesome!" he settled on. He could see the skeletal outlines of deserted and crashed ships in front of them like a grave yard. It looked like Ape's Concert except… darker.

"I hope I get to see dead bodies!" he commented, "Alright, Navigator Nami! Get us through those mystery waters!" it was hard, no, impossible, for him to contain the utter thrill on his face and the way his body thrummed from pure adrenaline excitement.

* * *

><p>As they got closer to the island, Nami realized that the whole island was surrounded by treacherous reefs. She had them sail halfway around the island before she came to the conclusion that the reef went the WHOLE way around.<p>

So, this was the first of the dangers. Her navigator eyes moved sharply and keenly over the surface of the choppy water. "We're going to have to sail through it... it's going to be rough. I need you to be in the skiff to make sure it follows exactly the route that I steer the Mini Merry on, okay, Luffy?"

She steered them in close, and her eyes latched onto a slip of current that looked rather smooth. It was almost impossible to pick out, but she knew the currents of the ocean like the blood in her veins. The path went dangerously close to both a set of craggy rocks as well as a shipwrecked ship that looked like it must be over a hundred years old.

Slowly, she led the nose of the Mini Merry into the current, and was surprised by how fast the ship was sucked forward. The currents gushed around them, and out of the corner of her eye, she could see hundreds of sea creatures clinging to the corals and rocks scant feet below them. Some were feasting on the bones of past seafarers, and she carefully directed her eyes up and forward.

She soooo didn't need to see that.

"Awesome!" Luffy shouted as they caught the current and shot forward, the wind whipping his hair around his face and sea water spraying up over the sides of the boats. Nami dared to glance over her shoulder at him, noting that he was practically quivering. He was exercising a severe amount of self control to not look into the water, she could tell.

The ship suddenly dipped low in a downward current, and she was thrown forward, only to catch herself on the masthead, though not before her forehead smacked it good and hard, leaving a small cut that dribbled out blood. No time to worry about it though, she hurriedly pulled back, gripped the helm, and twisted viciously, narrowing avoiding crashing into a set of crags covered in seaweed and urchins.

"Luffy, pull us closer!" she called, digging her heels in as the goings got a little rough. She held her breath, and kept doing so unconsciously until she was almost dizzy with it.

"Got it!" he replied, "Gum Gum…" he stretched his arm out and pulled the skiff right into the stern of the Merry, scraping the wood against wood. But the connection made it easier to make the sharp turns. With hand holding the boats together, his other hand steered the helm; every move she made, he mirrored it until they shot out of the reef like a bat outta hell, riding a smooth current straight for a strip of beach.

"We did it!" she exclaimed, pushing them straight into the surf and together, they jumped out and pulled the boats up onto the beach. She collapsed into the sand with a happy sigh and he dropped with her, sitting cross-legged.

"That was sweet," he commented, impressed once again by her navigating skills. He picked only the best for his crew, "I wish I could've seen some dead bodies though…" He glanced at her and realized that she had a slice open on her forehead, blood dripping down the side of her temple, "What happened?" he inquired, reaching out and thumbing the blood off her face. A slight bruise was blossoming around the cut, "I'll get you a bandage."

He jumped into the skiff and started rifling through her bags, looking for something that could heal her cut. He'd been around Chopper enough to know that when you bled, you needed a bandage. He pulled out a small bag and opened it to find some first aid stuff. He grabbed the roll of gauze and some tape and sat back down in the sand next to her. Above them, dark clouds swirled ominously.

"Sit up," he ordered, "I'll put a bandage on you," he unrolled the gauze and when she sat up, he laid it over the cut and proceeded to wrap it around her head until he was out of gauze and then he taped it together with some tape. He cocked his head and studied his handiwork.

"You look like a mummy," he concluded, "But you won't bleed anymore, so that's good."

"Thanks, Luffy," she murmured, then promptly undid everything he just did, and picked from the first aid kit a simple butterfly tape, laid it down across the cut to seal it up, and turned to face him to show him that it was just as effective as his many bandages at getting the cut to stop bleeding.

* * *

><p>It took them another couple of hours to pack everything they would need to take with them, and then start off into the jungle. Luffy carried the pack by himself, and she had her own satchel slung over a shoulder. She was glad she had his strength, but then again, most of the weight came from all of the food he'd insisted on bringing.<p>

Above them, clouds swirled ominously, but it was an unnatural cloud, one which lingered persistently, neither growing in size nor changing in shape. It gave her the creeps, and she couldn't keep herself from glancing up at it.

Every now and then, lightning would streak across the sky, and once, it slammed down onto the island hard enough to make Nami jump in the air. Yeah, she could definitely see why this place was called the island of the dead. It was damn scary. She knew she was being a little silly, but she kept obnoxiously close to Luffy, not letting him get far behind her.

He had stopped behind her to inspect some strange bug when she pushed a tree branch out of her way and came face-to-face with a shrunken head.

She let out a blood-curling scream and jumped a foot backwards. She instinctively pushed Luffy in front of her and grabbed the back of his shirt as she hid behind him. "It's a HEAD, Luffy!" she cried, her heart racing in her chest. The sudden adrenaline spike made her dizzy, VERY dizzy. She realized she was due to take her pill soon, and found that she was leaning on Luffy more than simply from fear, but because she'd become physically exhausted in the past few hours and had been pushing herself through it.

She still couldn't risk taking a pill yet... she had to push herself a little bit longer.

"Why is there a HEAD?" she demanded, peeking over his shoulder, "Ugh!"

He certainly got a face full of it when she clung to the back of his shirt. A shrunken head hung at eye level, dark and leathery, the face frozen into a scream, eyes closed, hair tied back into a neat and undisturbed braid. He regarded it carefully. It was definitely grotesque and creepy. The hair on the back of his neck tingled with awareness.

"It won't hurt you," he told her, poking it with the tip of his finger so that it swung back and forth slightly, "Robin would love this shit." She buried her face into his back and he chuckled at her, all the while, his brain working.

"It isn't why there's a head here… the question is how and who?" he mused, his eyes flickering around. He'd previously assumed this island was uninhabited; now, he was certain it wasn't. The head wasn't his only clue. His Kenbunshoku Haki was tingling, that sixth sense that alerted him of the presence of people he couldn't see, "There are people here, I can feel them," he muttered low to Nami. He reached out and grabbed her hand to tug her along, "Stay close."

* * *

><p>Final Thought from Luffy:<p>

_Let's bring a head home to Robin!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	5. Chapter 5

~Chapter Five~

Luffy pulled her through the forest, pushing around vines as thick around as snakes and over roots that were the size of tree trunks. The terrain was untouched and completely natural; like it had been growing for thousands of years undisturbed. They passed more shrunken heads of all shapes and sizes; men, women, children. It was nearly black this deep in the jungle, like midnight had decided to come early.

He sensed the attack before it happened. He grabbed Nami and shoved her to the ground, his body covering hers as arrows whizzed over their heads, embedding in the trees around them. The volley stopped and he lifted his head. He couldn't see anything; their assailants were well hidden by the dark and the foliage.

"We gotta move!" he told her, getting off her and pulling her to her feet. He took off through the jungle, dragging her behind him as more arrows chased them. It didn't matter to him that they were in some potentially deadly danger, he chuckled, using his Gum Gum powers to launch them through the trees. It was during one of these free falls that an arrow sliced him through the shoulder and he lost his grip on the tree branch. He and Nami went tumbling to the ground; he blew up into a ball to save her from the brunt of the fall.

When he deflated, blood dripping from his shoulder, he turned into the dark forest, eyes blazing, "Alright! Now I'm mad! Come out here and fight me!" he hollered, his arm out to keep Nami behind him.

"Luffy! Don't provoke them!" she growled at him. She had just been starting to calm down too, until those damn arrows started whizzing around them. Her heart and lungs were on overload from the running and swinging through trees. And her knees felt weak.

She opened her mouth to demand that they leave when his outstretched arm stopped her. Her eyes darted nervously through the shrubbery and shadows, and she realized the volley of arrows had suddenly stopped. She could hear whispers, and in the darkness, she thought she discerned a few key words; _hair. Red. Pretty. _The tone of voices was excited, but it was coming from all around them, from the shadows, in whispers that were almost indistinguishable from the sounds of the forest, and she could see nothing.

Her heart was thundering in her ears, making hearing even more difficult. She became aware of the fact that as the adrenaline from the free fall started to ebb a little, her symptoms were not.

Her fingers were shaking as she reached into her shirt for the packet of pills, but it was right in that moment that movement exploded out behind her. She barely had time to turn before something grabbed her hair, hard, and tugged backwards.

"Luffy!" she screamed, her hands shooting out as if to grab him, but she was pull back, too far.

It happened in slow motion. One minute, he was staring hard into the jungle, trying to get a glimpse of his attackers when Nami screamed behind him. He whirled around and saw that she was being dragged away by her hair, one hand holding her scalp and the other reaching out for him.

"NAMI!" he hollered, extending his hand out to grasp hers. Within the blink of an eye, she was gone, swallowed by the darkness that was the jungle around them. Her screams echoed, the vibrations bouncing off the foliage and resonating eerily.

He barreled through the forest, hoping roots and pushing off of trees like an angry bull. How DARE these savages kidnap Nami! He was going to make them pay…

Branches whipped his face, leaving welts behind as he screamed her name, praying for something to follow. It was so dark in here, he could barely see more than a few feet in front of him and things loomed out of the shadows like ghostly apparitions. He could still feel people and it was what he tried to follow, reasoning that anywhere there were people, he could find Nami. He ran until he couldn't breathe, his throat hoarse from yelling. He paused for a minute, his hand braced against a tree. Silence pressed in on him and it only made him angrier.

He reminded himself to stop, to think and breathe and focus his spirit, like Rayleigh had taught him. He just… needed to follow where the Haki was strongest and he would find her. He needed to have a clear head for this…

His eyes snapped to the left and he took off again, one hand tight on the back pack strap and the other his brace as he vaulted over nature's finest and pushed branches out of his way. He felt her, the slight aura that people naturally emitted. Minutes ticked by; every once and a while, he'd stop and reassess just where the hell he was. God, he was worse than Zoro in this jungle. He couldn't tell which way was north or south or up and down.

He was absolutely livid by the time he saw the torches through the trees. The foliage was thinning, turning into a clearing and tall Tiki torches lit a path for him, decorated with hundreds of shrunken heads. It occurred to him in a flash that each of the heads was unique and different; none of them were of ordinary people. A myriad of facial features, tattoos, hair colors and skin colors. He swallowed hard when he put two and two together. Nami had beautiful reddish copper waves that were rare. If this savages thought to make her into a shriveled head…

"NAMI!" he shouted, storming passed the torches and into what looked like the beginnings of a village.

* * *

><p>She was being carried, at high speeds, by multiple arms from multiple people as they raced through the forest at near-inhuman speed. Clearly, they were familiar with the territory.<p>

Panic and fear seized her, and she cried out, yelling and screaming as she kicked, trashed, and punched with all of her might. No matter what she did though, the hands simply re-adjusted, shifted, always holding her above the ground. She tried to twist her body to reach her Clima-Tact on her leg, but the hands yielded little. It was dark and scenery was flashing by so quickly, she couldn't see anything. Her attackers were wearing masks, but she did figure out that they were incredibly short people.

Short people who hung shrunken heads up in the forest, she presumed. "LUFFY!" she screamed as loud as she possibly could, desperately hoping he could track these savages. At least they hadn't killed her on sight.

_You better not get lost, Luffy_... she thought darkly as her struggles became weaker, and eventually gave in, winded with sweat beading her brow. She needed her pill, she needed to take it real soon, or she was a goner.

Suddenly, the forest around them disappeared. They shot out into a clearing, and the speed decreased until they came to a full stop. Nami was able to gather that they were in their village before they suddenly released her and her body hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Ow! That HURT, you savages!" she snapped, frantically scrambling onto her hands and knees and reaching into her shirt to grab her pills. Her hand shook violent as she freed one from inside the packet and popped it into her mouth. She slid the packet back in and struggled to her feet, her lungs laboring, her cheeks red with the temporary fever brought on by the withdrawal, and sweat dripped down her neck.

She came to her feet to find herself facing spears pointed at her chest from all directions as the natives assessed her. Excitement seemed to be spreading throughout the other villagers from where she stood, and some were even reaching out and touching her hair. She jerked away from them, only to find more spear points in her way. But with her hands free, she could finally use her Clima-Tact…

Only her hands encountered emptiness at the holster on her thigh rather than the cool, smooth metal of the deadly staff.

Panic spiked through her and her eyes darted around the assembled crowd, desperately seeking the bright blue weapon. There. One of the savages had it tucked into his belt. Clearly, they didn't want her to have _that_. And most of the time, without her Clima-Tact, she was pretty useless in a combat situation.

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Nami:

_I'm going to fry your butts!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	6. Chapter 6

~Chapter Six~

So things weren't looking that great.

As soon as the village chief arrived, he'd ordered her into a hut at spear-point, at which point a bunch of native women began tearing her clothes off. She'd desperately tried to keep her shirt – and her pills – with her, but the women had taken her clothes and deposited them into a basket in the corner of the hut.

They put her into a grass-skirt lined with beautiful seashells and stones, but had neglected to give her a top, leaving her breasts exposed except for a ritual necklace of more seashells and stones placed around her neck. Not that it covered anything…

But then, it seemed to be the fashion of the times, since none of the village women were wearing tops. Still, she was blushing furiously as they led her back out of the tent and towards an ornamented seat in the center of the village.

She was royally pissed. "Don't you touch me you dirty little savages!" she yelled at them as two men grabbed her arms and dragged her over to the chair to forcibly seat her down. Her eyes frantically flew to the hut where her pills were, making sure she would be able to find that hut out of all of the huts as soon as she was able to. At least she'd managed to get the pill down before they'd taken them away from her.

"Such pretty hair…" one of the men murmured, reaching out to stroke her locks. She jerked away from him and glared daggers in his direction, but only earned a chuckle as they backed away.

"Oh mighty Kuuvaa, we present to you an offering!"

Nami's eyes widened and she whipped around in the chair to find that an old man, and by old, the man looked like he'd risen from the grave only minutes ago, was walking towards her waving a stick and chanting.

"I am nobody's offering, _ossan_!" Her voice rose in anger and she shot to her feet. Everyone ignored her except one of the two guards standing next to her, who reached out and promptly forced her to sit back down.

"Who will accept this offering as their bride for the ceremony of Kuuvaa?" The old man turned his head from the left to the right, sweeping the crowd.

"Bride?" She exclaimed, glancing around wildly. "So I'm not going to die?" thank god…

"I do." A deep voice came from behind her, and she turned to find a man about her age, perhaps a little older, striding through the parting crowd. He was tall for these savages, and handsome. Okay, so maybe this wasn't so bad.

"Tergo, son of Mulampo, do you accept the offering as your temporary bride until the Kuuvaa takes her soul to the next realm?" The old man continued.

"I do," the man continued, and his eyes were locked on her, on her long hair, but his expression was neutral.

"Wait, temporary? What the hell is going on here?" Nami rose to her feet again, and shot towards this Tergo guy, raising her fists to hit him. "I want some damn answers!"

He caught both of her fists, and his eyes flickered over her face, passive.

* * *

><p>He skidded to a halt in the center of the village, lungs heaving, face absolutely burning with rage. His straw hat dangled around his shoulders. He dropped the backpack to the ground with a loud thump and surveyed just what the hell was happening.<p>

He was clearly in some sort of tribal village; every single person except Nami was of a deep olive skin tone, with dreaded black locks and intricate body and face paint. The men wore loincloths and armband jewelry and the women… they weren't wearing much either and he got his first overwhelming sight of breasts. Every shape and size; his anger was momentarily washed away by shock. Apparently, no one here was abashed.

His eyes skittered from the people to the huts to the ornate chair in the center of the circle then finally, he skipped over to Nami, easy to spot because she was the only fair skinned one here. She looked at livid as he was, trying to attack one of the natives, but he had both her wrists in a tight lock and was regarding her indifferently.

And his heart jumped into his throat when he realized with a rush that she was also… topless. Not that that was uncommon. Nami was filled with sass and when the boys always tried to chance at peek at the girls, she was the first to give them a show and send them to their knees. And seeing her half naked was part and parcel to living on a pirate ship that was vastly males.

Once the shock wore away, his ire flamed, "What the HELL is HAPPENING?" he demanded, "Why is my navigator NAKED? Give her BACK to me!" his voice was an angry mix of growl and shout, "Take your grimy hands OFF of her! Gomu Gomu…" he reeled his shoulder back and whipped it out at the savage holding her wrists. The man dodged the blow, staring at him with a strange expression and Luffy used that opportunity to grab Nami under her shoulder and haul her ass back over to him.

"He has the power of the devil!" someone shouted.

Luffy took off his shirt and hat and handed them back to Nami, avoiding looking at her, "Here, cover up and hold this," he said, before cracking his knuckles, "Now, who's ass am I kicking?"

* * *

><p>Nami heard Luffy's voice before she saw him. Her head snapped up and she spotted his shocked expression a moment before his arm suddenly shot out and he latched onto her. She figured it was supposed to knock this Tergo guy on his ass, but he avoided it, loosening his hold enough for Luffy to grab her.<p>

She let out a nervous sound like she always did when she was about to go flying from Luffy's gum gum. She gave a little wave and was ripped away from Tergo, and landed behind Luffy as he passed her both his shirt and his hat.

She was stunned and simply held the garments for a moment before her brain kicked in and she shrugged into the red vest, buttoning it up and plopping his hat on her head. Good, the more she covered her shinning locks the better.

Her brain kept returning to the somewhat possessive tone that had laced her captain's voice as he demanded that Tergo take his hands off of her. She KNEW she was looking too much into it, but still it made her stomach clench and a secret happiness to bloom in her chest. She pulled his hat down lower to cover the blush that filtered over her cheeks. Luffy had definitely stared at her breasts a moment he erupted in anger. She shouldn't be blushing; she'd flashed him before, but she was so much more aware of him now.

"Do you seek to challenge Tergo for her hand in marriage?" a calm, aged voice said over the whispers that had erupted from the debacle. "Because that is the only way to save her life. If that is your aim..."

The old decrepit man started walking forward through the crowd until he stood to the side of the open space where Tergo and Luffy faced one another. "As her husband, you will have the right to refuse offering her to Kuuvaa... Though he would dearly love her hair." The old man's eyes lingered over her locks and she self-consciously pulled them over one shoulder to hold in her hands.

"You should be warned, devil user. I've never been defeated, and many of your kind have come seeking the Chalice," Tergo said, and only with the promise of a good fight did a smile finally tug at his lips.

Luffy didn't respond right away, his face puckering up while he considered what he just heard. So. In order to prevent Nami from being turned into a shrunken head, he had to marry her? His first knee-jerk reaction was to say no, as he had to every single marriage proposal he'd encountered. But he stopped and weighed his options. He could kick ass, ya. Or he could avoid a fight, especially since his brain clued in that that guy had mentioned the Chalice. That was the treasure that Nami was after! So if he married her… That didn't seem too serious. These were tribal people on some crazy outlying island, no one would accept a marriage here as binding.

Then again, he supposed that it might be kinda awesome to take her shrunken head back to the crew, though, she was more useful as a navigator.

"Do you wanna be a shrunken head?" he asked her over his shoulder seriously.

"No!" she tutted at him, indignant.

He nodded, "I didn't think so. Wifey it is," and turned back to the old man. "Hey! Old guy!" he shouted, "I'll accept that challenge!"

The old ossan bowed his head, "You would seek to challenge Tergo for her hand in marriage?"

"Yeah, that's what I said," Luffy replied, "Then I can choose whether or not she's offered to your god, right?" at the old timer's nod, he chuckled, "Well, then, let's fight!" he flexed his fingers anxiously.

The old man indicated to the ever growing crowd of bystanders to make a circle which encased both Luffy and his opponent. His eyes scanned his surroundings. The light was dim at best; the forest so dark that no sky could be seen through the canopy and the place was lit with torches. Long shadows skittered across the ground and he wondered if he'd be able to use them to his advantage.

* * *

><p>Nami's face flamed right up when she realized that Luffy was going to have to marry her. She knew, logically, that it was just some silly tribe and it wouldn't be a real marriage, but it still made her a little dizzy. Her eyes flickered to Luffy, and he took it with such stride that it created mixed emotions in her. She was glad because clearly he wasn't bothered by it, but at the same time, she wanted SOME kind of reaction from him.<p>

Just went to prove that her captain really was clueless. Inside, she reprimanded for hoping for anything else. Besides, Luffy wouldn't have recognized that the marriage would have meant nothing as well.

"You better not lose, Luffy," she warned, and started backing up and out of the crowd surrounding them. She got halfway when two large hands closed around her arms and hoisted her off the ground. She let out a cry of outrage and looked up to find two beefy villagers, though still only her own height, carrying her towards the chair.

"Hey, put me down! What do you think you're doing?" she demanded, trying to pull away from them but it was like trying to move trees.

"You are the prize, and not to be left unattended during the battle... just sit here and don't move, woman," one of the men grumbled at her. As they forcibly sat her down, she jerked her arms out of their grips and glared at both of them.

"Don't call me that. It's disrespectful," she admonished, but they both promptly ignored her and stood on either side of the chair. The old man turned towards her and moved to stand a few feet in front of her. She glowered at his back too, grateful they hadn't removed Luffy's shirt from her.

Tergo turned slowly to face Luffy, his dark, midnight eyes flickering over Luffy's physique. Shirtless now, he had an even better view of the stretchy man. He looked as though he was in peak shape and had seen some battles, judging by the large X shaped scar on his chest. He was eager for this fight; something about the man appealed to him, and he wondered if they might have been friends under different circumstances. The same eagerness for battle shone in Luffy's eyes as Tergo felt.

Tergo was tall for one of their tribe, surpassing Nami by an inch. He was bald, his hair shaved off in respect to Kuuvaa. Intricate tattoos covered his shoulders, arms, and down his back. Out of the tribe, he had the most, though his father was very close. The amount of tattoos indicated his fierceness as a warrior.

He reached behind him, and drew out two long and wicked daggers. They were carved out of a black shiny stone, sharp to the touch, and were three feet in length, with six inches of rounded stone for a grip.

"Be prepared, devil man... tonight may very well be your last night... and hers as well," Tergo jerked his head in Nami's direction, though no pleasure came from saying the words, and it was evident on his face. He did what had to be done, and Kuuvaa was a god which needed to be pleased. If not this woman, then some other would die soon.

Tergo bent his knees, lifting his hands up, and suddenly disappeared. Rather, he moved so fast it was difficult for the human eye to follow. He shot forward, and was suddenly a foot away from Luffy, and deftly slashed out, catching the rubber man across the chest in a shallow cut before he had time to react. Tergo's eyes gleamed with anticipation.

"Too slow, devil boy," Tergo whispered, and shot out to the side, coming around his flank and back.

Nami shot to her feet with a gasp, but was quickly returned to it by two beefy hands. She shot them glares that would melt plastic, but then only glowered back and turned to watch.

* * *

><p><em>AN:_

Final Thought from Luffy:

_Damn! That guy is fast!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	7. Chapter 7

~Chapter Seven~

This guy was FAST.

He barely had time to jump back with a gasp before the tribal warrior slashed a shallow slice across his chest. Then, before he could even reel his arm back for a Gum Gum fist, he was kicked in the back and sent flying into the ground, skidding over the ground. He flipped out of the way, rolling to the side as a deadly dagger embedded into the ground where his head was.

Luffy got to his feet and wiped the dirt off his face with the back of his hand. Damn, this guy was good. He didn't think he was actually gonna have to break into Gears for this fight. He could respect that and had he not been fighting for Nami's life, he may have considered this guy as a strong ally.

Tergo came at him again and this time, Luffy didn't underestimate the speed and agility of his opponent. He burst into Gear 2nd and was across the arena as the tribal man was slashing in the exact spot Luffy had just evacuated.

"Jet Pistol!" Luffy launched his fist, so fast that his hand was back by his side before the warrior went skidding across the ground. Tergo shook his head and got to his feet. Around him, the crowd started chattering incoherently. He caught clips and phrases of shock and anger as he lifted his chin and regarded the warrior. He let his body steam out, deactivating his gear for the moment. No use wasting the energy just standing there.

The tribal man shot for Luffy again like the impact hadn't affected him at all. What a trooper. With wide eyes and a piped "yikes", Luffy grabbed a tree branch and zinged into a tree out of reach, "Ha! Get me from here!" he hollered with a chuckle. His amusement faded rapidly when Tergo dug his weapons into the bark and swung himself up into the tree.

"Fuck…" Luffy cursed and catwalked over the branches and tore one off just in time to whip around and swing it with full force at the guy, knocking him clear out of the tree. Luffy followed, landing feet from his opponent. He took a deep breath as Tergo came at him again, more ferociously than before and lightning fast. Luffy let his instincts take over and not one slash touched him as his head, shoulders and torso twitched and jerked to avoid the sharp blades.

It became apparent within seconds that Tergo was getting frustrated; Luffy could see it in his expression, the way his eyes narrowed, the sweat drop that trailed down his brow. Luffy took a step back, burst into Gear 2nd again and put some space between him and the warrior.

"Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!" Tergo turned towards the sound of Luffy's voice. Before he could even take a step, the rubber man's attack hit him with full force right in the solar plexus and sent him flying, literally crashing through the crowd and into the forest at the edge of the village. There was some more sounds of crashing, then… silence.

Luffy waited. One heartbeat. Two heartbeats. Nothing happened. That jackass was not getting up.

The rumblings started in the crowd as the villagers turned and gossiped to their neighbor. Luffy turned, remnants of steam furling off his skin. He just beat the snot out of their best warrior, supposedly. Did they plan to let him and Nami walk away from this?

* * *

><p>Nami watched the whole fight from the edge of her seat. Luffy was blowing his guy out of the water. Seemed a little unfair almost, but then she remembered that her captain was fighting to keep her pretty hair on her head and all thoughts of fairness blew away.<p>

She had no choice but to slap a hand over her mouth, because she kept wanting to yell out Luffy's name, but it would only distract him more. Luffy jumped down from the tree and just stood there and her heart might have just stopped. Her eyes widened a little, and she shot to her feet "Luffy!" she couldn't hold it back this time, but her concern was premature. Every single strike missed him as if they were performing a well-coordinated sparring demonstration.

Within seconds, Luffy had pulled back his arm and released it with enough for and strength to send Tergo flying, shooting back as crashes and distant animal cries met their ears. Everyone was still, silent, most of the villagers staring in stunned silence after the path of destruction that Tergo's body had wrought as he plunged through the forest. Her "friends" didn't even try to make her sit down.

Then Luffy turned and she could tell by the shifting of the villagers and the straightness of his spine that he wasn't sure if he was done fighting yet. She craned her head around to try and see if she could determine the state. Would the villagers pick up their spears and attack them? Though, she had a feeling they didn't know what to do really. Maybe this Tergo guy never lost a fight before.

Even her bodyguards looked a little bewildered and she took that opportunity to charge to her feet and race towards her captain. He had a shallow, yet long slash across his chest and she realized, delayed, that she didn't have a bandage or anything for him. He looked the least bit concerned.

"Thanks Luffy... I really didn't want to be a shrunken head." She said nothing about the fact that they were engaged or something now.

He flickered his eyes over to her and grinned, "You would've made an awesome shrunken head, you know," his tone was light, but his body was still tense.

"Shut up, baka," she replied. Movement caught both their eyes and the old man was walking towards them, or rather, hobbling on his gnarled cane.

"Strangers! This is a first for our village... But we will not begrudge you the celebration that is your due." Nami looked up to find a twinkle of amusement in the man's eyes. He was glanced down to where Tergo had gone flying, then back to Luffy. "The marriage ceremony will take place tonight, and a feast will follow…"

"Uh. Marriage ceremony?" she and Luffy said at the same time. Nami blinked, glancing from Luffy back to the old man.

Then Luffy; "Feast? WOO HOO! Food!" he fist pumped the air.

"Yes. Rites will be read and you will both be tossed into the pool of eternity for purification. Then a feast will follow. It is not elaborate... many of our brides or bridegrooms are not always willing... and so the ceremony is not that complicated," The old man glanced up as a shadow formed in the forest, and then emerged as Tergo.

The man looked pretty beat, and as he approached them, his stoic expression slipped to one of admiration and respect. He stopped only when he was level with Luffy, and then his hand shot out. "I have never lost to anyone, devil man, nor have I ever enjoyed a battle as much...You may count yourself as an honorary member of our tribe from this moment hence."

"It was pretty awesome," Luffy replied with a grin. He slung his arm over the man's shoulder, "I think you could give my swordsman a run for his money…"

Nami perked a brow at him, and rolled her eyes. Men. They got over fights like they were nothing.

Luffy glanced at Nami. Now that he was over being pissed about her becoming a sacrifice to their god or whatever, the weight of what he committed to by fighting for her hit him. Marriage… he knew that it was some backwards tribal village thing, so therefore not meaningful to the whole society, but it still didn't stop the butterflies from brushing the inside of his stomach. Which was weird, as marriage zero-percent excited him.

"Come!" the old man exclaimed, "Let us start out feast to celebrate our new friends and future husband and wife!"

* * *

><p>AN:

Oh, it is no where NEAR over, ladies and gentlemen! Brace yourselves!

Final Thought from Nami:

…_Marriage…?_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	8. Chapter 8

~Chapter Eight~

Because Luffy kept drooling over food and talking about how he hadn't had a square meal in days, they decided to have the feast before the rites. Nami was just fine with that; if they could get away without the rites, that would be even better.

She couldn't imagine anything more awkward than her clueless captain getting marriage rites read next to her while Nami was in secret knots over it.

So once the feast had been announced, Nami ran straight for the hut where she'd been forcibly stripped of her clothing. She leapt onto the basket with her garments with more fervor than she should have, betraying a little the importance she felt for them.

To everyone else, after all, they were just clothes. But to her... the little packet was a matter of life and death. The others, including all of the curious women who couldn't stop touching her hair and following her around, finally left the tent to give her some privacy, though they didn't understand why, considering they didn't have a sense of modesty.

Knowing that the packet was safe and undisturbed, Nami's actions slowed down now. Her fingers went to the buttons of Luffy's shirt, but she hesitated, her eyes flickering to the grass door of the hut, then she lifted the material and inhaled Luffy's unique scent, hugging the material to her body.

He smelled... like the open sea, of warmth, and comfort. His own personal musky scent was actually comforting to her. A few weeks ago, she would have called even herself creepy, for standing in a hut and smelling her captain's shirt, but knowing that one's life had a time limit, and one as short as Nami's had become since her unfortunate encounter with Watcher, had changed her perspective. Her fingers were shaking now, but this time it wasn't from withdrawal. She so desperately did not want to die. She did not want to spend the rest of her life as Watcher's personal slave. She was a Straw Hat Pirate - she didn't even care that she had a little crush on her captain, she would forgo ever sharing anything with him, just to be with him and her nakama on the Sunny-Go for a few more years.

She would find the Chalice. She would use it to free herself and the girls.

Drawing in a breath to steady herself, Nami changed into her own outfit of a button-up pink blouse, purple bikini and a pair of short hip-hugging jean shorts quickly now, hearing the laughter and merry-making that was starting outside. Once dressed, she secured the packet in the inside pocket of her shirt, then picked up Luffy's shirt and folded it neatly, plopping his hat down on her head.

She exited the hut to find that a large fire had been started in the center of the village, and many of the villagers had gathered around. A large animal of some kind, which resembled a boar, was roasting on the spit, and pieces of the animal which were already cooked had been placed on large platters in front of the villagers, and especially in front of Luffy, who was sitting next to Tergo and talking with the villagers, both of them pictures of relaxation and enjoyment, despite being at each other's throats only an hour before.

A ghost of a smile tugged at her lips. Luffy was such a simple guy, who loved adventure and meat above all else. And had the dangerous ability to make friends out of even the deadly warriors. She headed over to her shirtless captain and dropped his red vest in his lap and plopped his hat down on his head.

Without a word, she headed over to where the Old Man – introduced as Old Man Mosa the Shaman, was overseeing the cooking.

"So is there anything else we should know about this marriage... thing…? Maybe we could just, skip it?" Nami asked, using that tone of voice of hers that she reserved for when she needed to get things her own way.

The Old Man grinned at her with a knowing look in his eye, and Nami shocked herself by blushing.

"I may be old, but I am not blind... though your future husband is pretty close. I can see the way your eyes linger on him... Do not lie in telling me you do not wish this marriage to come to fruition." The Old Man laughed when her mouth popped open in protest, but he held up a hand to stop her. "The rites are very quick. He will be instructed to take your hand, I will speak in the Language of the Old, and then both of you will be carried to the pool of Eternity and tossed in. It is your husband's duty to carry you out of the water, and -"

"Luffy can't go in the water. He's eaten a devil fruit, he'll drown," Nami said flatly.

The Old Man blinked, then let out a sharp laugh. "My, it seems old age has caught on sooner than expected. I should have explained sooner... And fear not, he will not drown. This water is the water which, when drunk from the Chalice of Kuuva, will grant eternal youth. Your future husband's devil fruit will not drown him in this water. It is mystical waters."

Nami's mouth popped open in surprise. "So, the Chalice is real?" she asked, excitement bubbling up in her chest.

"Why yes, we believe it to be in the Cave of Darkness, which we are forbidden to enter. No one has ever seen it though... and I see that look in your eye. You cannot hope to survive. Those caverns are extremely dangerous. And no, the water itself will not suffice. It is useless without the Chalice."

Nami's eyes shifted to watch the flames as her brain raced. This was great news! She might live after all! If she could get the Chalice in time…

"Will you show us, where this cavern is?" Nami asked, turning intense and burning eyes on the Old Mosa.

He was silent for a long time, studying her carefully. Then a great sadness filtered into his blue eyes, the only ones in the tribe. "You have a great burden, Child. Though you will surely die, I will show you. I can see in your soul that nothing I say will change your mind... But I will not tell you till the morning, so you will go through the rites tonight and sleep in our village."

Nami had to look away from him, from those eyes which saw too much. She shivered and nodded her thanks, then headed over to sit next to Luffy.

"Luffy, in the morning, Old Mosa is going to show us the cave where the Chalice is, so we better rest up tonight," Nami told him, but she didn't look at him, her eyes glued to the leaping flames instead.

"You cannot enter the Cave of Darkness! You will never emerged," Tergo growled, his expression suddenly snapping to one of dark urgency.

"We're going," Nami said dispassionately. She missed the strange expression of Tergo's face as he regarded her in silence, then glanced up to the Shaman of the tribe, who nodded gravely.

"So be it... but none of us will be able to offer aid, for we are forbidden to enter," Tergo said tersely, looking away from the copper-haired woman and to her future husband.

* * *

><p>He had to suck back the drool that threatened to escape when the villagers put a huge pig on a spit over the fire. His stomach contracted painfully. He was so hungry…<p>

As soon as she was able, he saw Nami dart into the hut for her clothes. He would have thought nothing of this, considering it's Nami and she was possessive over her things, but something triggered to him about her expression. She looked so… frantic and wild. It occurred to him that he was starting to see this look more often out of her, only solidifying the feeling that something was wrong with her. He couldn't shake that she was in some kind of trouble. The sneaking around, the reservation, the running away from the crew, the insistence on this crazy adventure – which was most definitely unlike her – she just seemed really out of her comfort zone.

He had the distinct impression that he was putting together a giant puzzle about her, because she wasn't offering any details. Some concepts of life may confuse him to the point where people think he's a simpleton, but he knew his nakama. No, he knew his navigator and Nami was being… weird.

He decided to push his thoughts to the back burner when a young women handed him a heaping plate of cook boar and he went to it with relish, "I hope you have more, ossan, because I could eat that pig by myself."

The old man laughed, his blue eyes sparkling, "I don't doubt it, young devil man. But don't worry, we have no shortage of food here."

Luffy grinned, "Sweet!" Just then, Nami came out of the hut, looking a bit better all dressed in her shorts and shirt and a little less anxious. She dropped his shirt in his lap and stuffed his hat on his head, "Thanks!" he told her around a mouthful of delicious meat, shrugging into his shirt but too impatient to eat to button it up.

Tergo came down to sit with him and the two struck up conversation. Every once and again, Luffy's eyes would seek out Nami, checking on her, probably out of habit more than anything else and he noticed that she was getting fidgety talking to the old guy.

"She's quite beautiful, yes?" Tergo asked him, drawing Luffy's attention back to him. He'd been unconsciously studying Nami and her body language for clues.

"Who? Nami?" at Tergo's nod, Luffy shrugged, "I guess so," gee, he never really thought about it. He supposed that he thought that Nami was beautiful. He didn't really pay attention to other females. He guessed that he found some pretty; let's face it, Tikka and Robin weren't like gross hags or anything, but he liked Nami best because of her personality. It didn't mean that he didn't appreciate the other girls on his ship, but… Nami was fun and easy to get along with and he even liked her sassy tendencies and ire at times. And she was a swell navigator. Maybe that just made her more… appealing… he wasn't sure. He couldn't pin down what it was exactly about Nami.

He turned his eyes back to watch her and she was nearly jumping out of her skin at this point, excitement all over her face. She rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet and suddenly, his stomach tightened, butterflies brushing against his skin. He rubbed his chest, his brow furrowed. The Mystery Feeling…

Nami came back to sit down on the other side of him and told him that they would be going to find the Chalice in the morning. He swallowed a piece of meat – and his Mystery Feeling – and grinned, "Awesome!" he replied, "I can't WAIT."

His eyes ping-ponged back and forth to catch the conversation between Nami and Tergo and his eyes narrowed just a hint at her tone, so flat and determined. She wanted this treasure desperately. Either it was worth a lot of money or… he couldn't think of an 'or' off the top of his head, but there was one.

He offered her some of the food on his plate and after a few more minutes of eating and conversation, the old man stood up and raised his arms.

"It is time!" Old Mosa explained, "The marriage rites shall begin now!"

"I'm not done eating!" Luffy hollered, stuffing food in his cheeks quickly then forced to declare himself finished.

"Come then, strangers! To the altar so that we may read your rites to you."

Luffy and Nami headed up to the altar and the crowd of villagers gathered around them. The altar was decorated, apparently to honor their god Kuuva or something, with torches lit around it. It was very tribal-y and old.

They stood next to each other as the old timer started speaking in some old language. Luffy could feel his heart threatening to jump into his throat despite the fact that he _knew_ this was some silly ceremony so in order to counteract it, he nudged his shoulder against Nami, "This is fun, right?" he grinned.

"Most unique way to save someone's life, for sure," she replied and the banter helped him settle on this being silly.

"And we get to go treasure hunting in the morning!"

She nodded and gave him that wicked smile that she got whenever money or gold was involved. For a heartbeat, the old Nami came back to life.

The rites finished up and everyone bowed to them to honor their eternal binding and the old man gestured for two body guards to come up, "Take them to the pool of eternity so that they may be bound together under the blessing of the great Kuuva!"

"Pool?" Luffy gasped as he was hauled up by one guard and Nami by the other, "Pool as in water?" he glanced at her with a wide-eyed expression, "I ate a devil fruit," he turned to Old Mosa, "I can't swim."

The old man chuckled, "Of course. This is the only pool of water in the entire world that devil fruit powers are not nullified by. You will be safe and sound."

Wait. Water that didn't affect him, a devil fruit user? As in… "Can I _swim_?" he exclaimed, excitement apparent on his face. Through the trees, he could hear the gentle tinkling of a waterfall into a pool and the sparkle of its reflection.

"If you so desire…" the old man chuckled.

Luffy fist pumped the air, "AWESOME! To the pool! Faster!"

The lagoon wasn't very big, probably twenty feet wide and he couldn't imagine very deep in the middle, but it felt so serene and sacred. Just a few torches were lit around it, but there seemed to be a natural, ethereal glow about the pool anyway. So this was the place that once the Chalice was dipped into, eternal youth would be granted? Interesting. It certainly fit the bill.

The body guards walked up a set of stone stairs to the very edge of the basin. At the old man's count, Luffy and Nami were tossed in. Slight panic washed over him as soon as he hit the water and it washed over his head, and yet, he could feel that he was still in control of his body. He surfaced with a gasp and grin and turned to Nami, "I CAN SWIM!" he hollered in triumphant excitement. With a gleeful chuckle, he swished his arm in the water and splashed her in the face with it.

A/N:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	9. Chapter 9

~Chapter Nine~

"_And tell me how can you deal with all this weight? __Speak now, you must have a secret kept down,__ d__own where you can keep it - I need you to spill your guts." Runaway - Cartel_

Nami tried to act as nonchalant as possible as their "marriage" rites were read in some old dialect, but her stomach was tying itself in knots and it was an effort to keep her face from flaming. This was a silly ritual from some backward tribe, she told herself. She repeated it in her head like a mantra the whole time, and did her best not to look at Luffy.

He completely undid her resolve with the glee on his face. She couldn't help herself, his excitement was contagious and a smile tugged at her lips. Sure, she was in a struggle for her very life, but he didn't know that, and his ability to keep a smile on her face somehow made her situation better.

When they were suddenly hoisted up Nami reached out and grabbed Luffy's arm to steady herself, an automatic reaction. He was a rock, steady and unyielding. Her rock. She hurriedly let him go though, considering what they had just done, and was thankfully distracted as they marched up to the edge of a basin.

Her hand flew to her chest to hold the packet to herself as they were tossed into the water. The pills were water-proof, and only stomach acid dissolved them, which was a blessing because she'd already been unexpectedly doused with water with the pills in her possession, and had nearly expired with worry that they would all be ruined.

Still, she couldn't lose the packet, and she clung to it to her chest with dear life as they went flying through the air, and then landed in the water with a splash. Her legs found the bottom relatively easy, and she found that in the center, the deepest the little lagoon got was up to her chest. So, standing, she faced Luffy, only to have him splash water in her face with a chuckle.

The excitement coming off of him was infectious, and she realized that it must suck to never be able to splash in the water. Knowing that Old Mosa wasn't going to tell her anything about the cave until the morning, Nami decided that she could kick back a little for the night, and approached Luffy with a mischievous smile on her face.

"That's right, and that means I can finally do this…" she swept out a foot to dislodge his legs, then promptly dunked him under the water again. "Victory!" she called, raising her arms in the air with a laugh. It felt... good. It felt GREAT, actually, after so much worrying.

She let out a chuckle and drifted back in the water. She was completely oblivious to the fact that her light pink button up shirt was now completely see-through, exposing the purple bikini top that she had on underneath. The wet shirt clung to her breasts and stomach like a second skin, and the packet, unbeknownst to her, became visible through the fabric.

* * *

><p>He knew revenge when he saw it and he couldn't stop the way his heart leapt into his esophagus at the look in her eyes. Wicked and mischievous.<p>

Unused to water fight, he didn't see her leg until she swept it behind his knees and dunked him once again. A chuckle escaped him in the form of bubbles and he resurfaced with a huge grin.

She screamed a victory and drifted backwards through the water, her copper hair fanning out around her like red seaweed. They were both soaked to the bone and he could see right through her shirt. He made an amused faced and pointed at her, hunkered down so just his chin was above the water, "I can see your bikini top…" he whispered wickedly, not at all perturbed by the sight. Nami typically strutted around half naked in just a bikini, sometimes shorts. Though, it didn't change the fact that she had a helluva body on her. A complete hourglass figure he'd heard other women would sell their souls for.

She laughed and flicked water with her fingertips at him. What drew his eyes next was something else he could see through the button down. He waded closer to her, eyes narrowed suspiciously on the left breast pocket of her shirt. He could see something that looked like a little plastic packet filled with… what looked like some kind of medication. He was no doctor, but he knew that Nami was a healthy woman and didn't need to take anything on a daily basis, nothing that would merit her to carry it around on her person.

It didn't take much for him to put two and two together, "What are those?" he asked quietly, so their audience wouldn't hear them. His eyes flickered from her face to the packet and back up again, "What's wrong? Are you sick?"

* * *

><p>Her smile faded fast when Luffy looked at her with a suddenly serious expression on his face, and he waded closer to her. She let her feet drop down to the ground and stood. His eyes flickered down to her left breast and then back up. "What are those?" he asked in a quiet, serious tone. A tone Luffy rarely used.<p>

She glanced down, and all of the color drained out of her face. Her hand shot out to cover the packet, and she backed away from him, shaking his head. "No, I'm not sick Luffy. It's nothing, just nothing," she told him, forcing a smile on her face and waving her hand. Before he could say or do anything, she turned her back on him and started striding, purposefully, towards the shore.

"Miss Nami, you may not emerge from that water without your husband carrying you out," a sharp and old voice came from the beach. Old Mosa was watching her, a big grin on his face. The rest of the village chuckled, some were elbowing one another and whispering. Clearly, this was a favorite part of the ritual.

She stopped dead in her tracks, but didn't turn to face Luffy. Her fingers curled into fists, then she released them and let out a breath, and struggled to keep up her facade. She had to evade any more of his questions…She had to distract him from asking any more. "Come on Luffy, I'm WAITING! Jeeze, you're such a fail as a husband."

Her voice was light, teasing, but her heart was in her throat, and for so many different reasons that it made her dizzy. From the idea of Luffy, as her husband, carrying her out of the water. From the prospect of Luffy finding out about the pills. From everything that was at stake.

* * *

><p>She was soooo evading his question.<p>

He eyed her suspiciously for a minute, trying to decide whether or not this was something serious enough to devote attention to. He was curious about her pills. She acted nervous about them, which made him even more curious because she was trying to hide them from him. He tried to run through a list of what one needed to take drugs for, but he was coming up lacking. His experience with medicine was somewhat less than novice.

She started to swim towards the shore when a sharp voice called out, the old man telling her that her "husband" had to carry her out of the water. All eyes turned to Luffy and Nami hollered at him over her shoulder.

"Oh! Right! I'm the husband!" he remembered suddenly, having spaced out that this whole being-able-to-swim-thing was actually part of a wedding ceremony.

He waded through the water, and, feeling a little mischievous, he snatched Nami around her waist and hauled her over his shoulder, his arm wrapped securely around the back of her thighs as she dangled down his back, "Come along, wifey," he teased her, tromping out of the pool. Around them, the tribes-people hushed giggles behind their hands.

He placed her on her feet carefully, unintentionally sliding her down his body. The sensation sent lightning through him for some reason, the feeling of damp skin and wet clothes lingering together for too long. It was heady and that churning, butterflies mystery feeling swirled through him, the one he was coming to associate with only her.

"The marriage rites are now complete!" Old Man Mosa explained to him, "You have exited the pool of eternity and therefore, you are officially eternally bonded before the great Kuuva."

"That's it?" Luffy blurted, "Just jumping in a pool?"

"That's it."

He glanced from the ossan to Nami and out to the crowd. Well, he supposed that if tribesmen were going to marry women who would eventually turn into sacrificial shrunken heads, then the ceremony didn't have to be that complicated. Still, didn't weddings have like… kissing?

The idea popped into his head, recalling with it a hazy memory from a couple of weeks ago, a drunken escapade on the ship. He distinctly remembered Nami kissing him on the cheek and calling him a meathead for some reason. Didn't he jump off the ship or something?

He leaned down and gave her a swift kiss on the cheek, much to the delight of a few of the tribe folks. He fought the furious flush that threatened to creep up his neck. Kissing, even on the cheek was so… beyond just friends, but he covered up his shyness with a huge grin, "There, a little more finality, right?"

* * *

><p>Nami had her arms crossed and was pretending to be annoyed when Luffy suddenly came out from around her, and picked her up to toss her over his shoulder. She let out a little cry of surprise, especially with the feel of his fingers around her thighs as he held onto her.<p>

Heat flushed to her face and she let out a grumble as she smacked him on the back. "That is not what a husband is supposed to do, Luffy! But then, you're definitely not a normal husband…" that last part was said more quietly, a grumble to herself.

Both of them were dripping wet as he strode out of the water and onto the beach, where Old Man Mosa was waiting with a laugh. Luffy put her down carefully, and her eyes flew open wide from the feeling of her body sliding almost intimately down his as he set her on her feet. Their clothes were wet and did very little to mask the feel of each others' bodies. She could feel his scar, and the ridges of his abs, against her stomach as she slid down him, and it made butterflies erupt through her belly like never before and heat to filter into her cheeks.

Her knees felt wobbly as she hurriedly took two steps back from him. Luckily, she could pass the blush off from being carried like a bag of potatoes. That is, until he suddenly leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.

She froze, going perfectly still, and felt a shiver of happiness travel down her spine. She turned to look at him in surprise, only to find him grinning at her.

This was dangerously close to something she couldn't handle. Luffy looked like he was just being his goofy, clueless self, and she was going up in flames over such little gestures. She was definitely losing her mind and her sensibility. She had to get a hold of herself.

"Uh, I guess," Nami answered, forcing a smile on her face. Jeeze, she was jumping out of her skin about everything. Telling herself to relax and enjoy the moment, her smile slowly became more genuine as Tergo, Old Mosa, and others swarmed around them, laughing, joking, and generally making merry.

The rest of the evening was like that, and it turned into a big party. She tried to act natural, but she was extremely aware of Luffy at all times, and also a little antsy. Though she knew she could do nothing until the morning when Mosa revealed to them the location of the cavern, it didn't sit well with her that she was enjoying herself when young innocents were living hard lives and facing daily dangers each day that she was away. She felt guilty.

Finally, late into the night, she'd excused herself from the festivities. Before she got far, Tergo grabbed her hand and waved a hand in Luffy's direction, who stood just a few feet from her. "A hut has been constructed for both of you, the newlyweds." The man actually smiled again, rare for him, and her stomach dropped right out under her feet.

"Oh... thank you…" Nami forced a grateful chuckle and mentally told herself to calm down. They'd slept in the same room hundreds of times, no need to get silly about it now. She followed Tergo as he led her towards the tent, and thanked him before she stepped inside, finding that the backpack Luffy had been carrying was neatly inside.

She went over to it, unpacked what she would need to sleep, and laid out a bedroll on one side of the hut, yawning. She quickly took her pill, glancing back at the door of the hut to make sure Luffy wasn't watching. That done, she stretched out on the bedroll and looked up at the ceiling, trying to quiet her thoughts enough to sleep. She kept feeling the ghost of Luffy's lips on her cheek, and reached up to rub said cheek with her hand absently.

* * *

><p>It was late by the time he entered the hut that had been given to them for the night. He'd been too excited to sleep, so he'd partied all night with the tribes-people and ate and made lots of merriment. Now, he was full of food and lethargic over it.<p>

Nami was sleeping, curled up and snuggly on her bedroll and blanket and he stared at her with a face of utter envy. It took an extreme amount of will power to get his own bedroll put together and avoid the temptation of pirating hers from her, or forcing her to share. He was exhausted now…

He collapsed onto his stomach with a sigh and rolled his head over so that he could face her. Her back was to him, so all he could really see was the form of her body under the blankets, a mass of copper hair and the gentle rise and fall of her breathing. It was soothing to watch her for a few minutes, his face passive, but his brain was continuously turning. He was convinced that she was in trouble; big trouble. Not that he cared what stage of trouble she was in, all he cared about was that something was wrong and she was actively refusing to talk about it and therefore ask for help. And it bothered him. It bothered him because she should trust him, as her friend and her captain.

When she'd gone to bed, Luffy had brought up in general conversation to Tergo and Old Man Mosa what someone would need to take a daily medication for.

"It's hard to speculate because many travelers who come through here use modern medicines," Mosa had explained, "We've used a daily dose of medicine for the faint of heart and the old, sometimes for young to help them stay healthy. For injuries in battle and for recovering from poison sometimes too."

He still didn't feel like he was any closer to figuring out what her issue was.

Deciding to let it go yet again, Luffy rolled over and closed his eyes to get some wrack. They were going on a treasure hunt tomorrow… he would need his sleep.

He woke up early, earlier than he EVER did, because he was a hard sleeper. But he was too anxious to start hunting for this treasure that he didn't sleep great. And… well, he kept rolling over and checking on Nami too. She seemed like such a flight risk. In the boat, she couldn't go anywhere because she wouldn't leave him stranded in the ocean. But here she could take off in the middle of the night and it'd take him forever to find her in this god forsaken jungle.

So when he woke to the early sounds of village life, he blew a quiet sigh of relief that she was still here, wrapped in her blankets just like he left her the night before. But at this point, he wasn't about to go back to sleep.

"Nami…" he hissed from his bedroll. She didn't move, so he crawled over to her, "Nami! Wake up! We're going treasure…" he touched her shoulder to rouse her and immediately snapped his hand back. Through the thin material of her shirt, she was burning up. He pushed the blanket off her a little and saw that tendrils of hair were clinging to the back of her neck and to her forehead.

"Jeezus, Nami… you are burning up…" he shook her again, "Get up! What's wrong with you? Tell me," his voice was sharp and serious, the only evidence of his concern for her.

* * *

><p>AN:

Oh my goodness! I've made you wait SO LONG for an update! Sorry! Time gets away from me, I guess. Well, here comes a whole slew of chapters! Happy reading!

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	10. Chapter 10

~Chapter Ten~

In her dreams, the world was on fire. Reds, yellows, and whites contrasted sharply with dark shadows, and Watcher's voice chuckled darkly from every corner of her mind, from all of the shadows. She ran, seeking the cool blue of the ocean, where Luffy would be, but the more she ran, the higher the flames rose.

"Get up!" A sharp voice shot through the dream, and Nami rolled onto her back, her lips parting as she pulled in a shaky breath and her eyes opened, slightly glazed. She was disoriented, hot, shaky, and her stomach was cramping painfully.

Luffy's face swam into view, and she realized with a shot of panic that she was in advanced stages of the drug withdrawal. She sat up quickly, and the world tilted dangerously. She couldn't look at him. Her shaking fingers instinctively went to her breast pocket, but he was already suspicious enough. If she took it in front of him…

"It must be from this forest, this jungle, Luffy. Just... like, a jungle fever," she told him, her voice slurring a little. She shot to her feet, and nearly fell over. She headed out of the hut. "Just let me get water, I'll be fine."

In the instant where she was out of the hut, alone, she slid her hand into her pocket and extracted the pill, popping it into her mouth too fast for him to see. She was an excellent pickpocket, after all, and picking her own pocket was the easiest.

That done, she hurried towards the well in the center of the village, her breaths coming in short pants now. She sank to the ground in front of one of the buckets, reached out, and promptly dumped the whole bucket over her head, which she tilted forward to avoid getting all of her clothes wet too. Her hands were shaking, though only slightly.

"Jungle fever, eh?" a quiet voice asked from nearby, and she glanced up to see Tergo leaning back against the well with his arms crossed over his bare chest. "You're the first outsider I know to get this... jungle fever."

Nami glared up at him and looked away. "I don't think it's too bad, it should go away soon enough. I already feel better... I just needed water."

She spent the next ten minutes stubbornly drawing up another bucket of well water to drink, and each pull of the rope made her muscles scream. But every minute, the symptoms began to fade, starting with her stomach cramps, as her system got the poison it needed. Tergo watched the whole thing and didn't offer his aid. He was proving a point, but he too became confused when she started to get better. His eyes, much like Luffy's had, narrowed in suspicion.

_'Neither of them will have heard of this drug... they'll never figure it out…'_ she told herself grimly as she put the bucket down on the ground, grabbed a cup, and started drinking water, which gave her an excuse to ignore all questions, since her mouth was busy. Old Man Mosa had arrived by then, and his eyes, instead of suspicious, were sad. Nami gave him a warning look, because something in her chest told her that he knew.

"Nothing I say will convince you to avoid this cavern, will it?" The old man asked gently, and when Nami stubbornly shook her head, the man sighed.

* * *

><p>She didn't look good at all. He knew a fever when he saw one and if she hadn't been acting all strange before they even got to the jungle, he may have dismissed it and agreed with her over the jungle fever nonsense. But that wasn't going to fool him. Something was WRONG and it was beginning to wear on him that she was being so stubborn as to not tell him. He wanted to help her. He contemplated that it had to be something serious or she would have broken down already and told him what the trouble was. She must have gotten mixed up with something over the break.<p>

He made a note to ask her, more seriously, in an instance when she couldn't run away from him. Like… on the boat, off this island.

He packed up their stuff and exited the hut and to his bewilderment, she was by the well, looking fit and better already. It looked like she dumped water on her head and maybe had a drink, but she wasn't that crazy mix of flushed from fever and pale from sickness anymore. She still looked a little shell shocked, but overall… fine.

She seemed alright now. Maybe he was imagining her sickness. No, no way he imagined that. And damn if that didn't make him more suspicious of her. She was secretive and jittery, frantic and tense and slipping in and out of health. And she was on some daily medication.

Old Man Mosa approached her and Luffy came up behind them, "We're ready to go treasure hunting, old geezer! Tell us where this badass cave is." he pushed Nami's condition from his mind for now. If treasure hunting wasn't going to lift her spirits, he didn't know what would. That woman loved her treasure and money more than her own life sometimes.

"It's really dangerous. Are you certain I cannot convince to you avoid the cave's perils?" the old man implored and Luffy shook his head defiantly as an answer.

"Alright then," Mosa continued, "The cave, known as the Cave of Darkness, lies in the center of the island, where the black clouds gather strongest," he pointed up at the sky to said swirling midnight clouds, "You cannot miss it, for it is naturally shaped like a large human skull."

"So cool…" Luffy muttered.

The old man pressed on, "As our tribe is forbidden to enter it, I know little of what is inside. Darkness, of course. Travelers who have entered briefly say that it is a winding maze and fire cannot pierce its depths. However, what lies beyond that is a mystery. Our ancients have passed down the story that the Chalice for the Pool of Eternity rests in the deepest parts of that cave. If you truly seek that treasure, it will be there."

"Awesome," Luffy replied, "So it is a REAL mystery cave!"

"Indeed. If you are prepared, set out now while you have daylight still. The island will become steadily darker as you approach the cave." Old Man Mosa instructed them, a sad look in his eyes, "I wish you safe returns."

"I got all the stuff ready," Luffy thumbed over his shoulder, his conversation directed at Nami, "I'll get it and we can go." He was literally quivering with excitement and anticipation.

* * *

><p>The hike to the entrance of the cave took less time than she was expecting, partially because Tergo had decided to accompany them part of the way. He went as far as his tribal laws allowed, and then he pointed out the rest of the way with instructions. According to him, no one has ever emerged from the cave alive that they knew off, and only a handful of visitors had gone part of the way in before fleeing it in fear of their lives, raving mad about hundreds of vicious, man-eating beasts, bleeding heavily.<p>

Standing now at the mouth of the cave, Nami didn't wonder why. Her whole body was tense with nervousness, and the fact that the cave was shaped like a skull was not helpful. It was very ominous. She tied to the entrance of the cave the long string that she'd brought in the backpack, and explained to Luffy as she went. "This string will guide is out of the cave so that we don't get lost. We'll tie it around rocks and such whenever we take a turn, and it will guide us out once we have the Chalice. Hopefully it's long enough…"

She straightened and turned to look up at the dark sky, wincing when a bolt of lightning struck the ground a few yards away, in the middle of the forest. "Well, at least the lightning can't hit us in here," she said, trying to stay cheerful, as she slowly headed into the cave.

It was definitely dark, and when she struck up a match to see, it was like the darkness just swallowed up the firelight. She bit her lip, and then gasped suddenly, rounding back to Luffy and digging in the backpack on his back. She rifled around for a minute until she pulled out a light dial, showing it to Luffy in triumph.

"Great idea," he said as she turned it on and the cave walls around them were illuminated.

"Oh wow…" Nami murmured as they came to the discovery that the rock this cave was carved out of was some kind of mineral-rich rock that shimmered and glittered in the light. She even went so far as to scratch the wall with another stone to see if there were any gems or gold in it, but the glitter came off in flecks within the stone. Mineral it was.

"It's actually quite beautiful... shall we?" she asked, turning to look at Luffy as she pointed down the way. She had taken all of three steps when a low grumble, low enough that it made her bones ache, rumbled up from within the cave, freezing her steps as she stared, wide-eyed, into the darkness.

"That... sounded like an animal… a lot of animals... Luffy, maybe you should go first!" she suggested with a wide grin on her face that belied her nervousness and fear.

Before she could drag him in front of her, he manually moved her to the side by hauling her up by her waist and depositing her a foot to the left of him, "There's something down here, definitely," he answered her. He took the light dial from her and grabbed her hand to lead the way down the steady decline, "Don't lose me," he added over his shoulder as he flashed the light dial all around the tunnel.

Somehow, as he put her aside and then took her hand, he gave her some of his courage. She pulled in a breath and forced herself to walk, following him as her eyes darted down to where their hands were linked. The curious flip in her stomach was nowhere near as intense or hot as her reaction to him the night before, after the pool. This react was... gentle.

They went further down, the putrid stench of dead and dying permeated the air, thick enough that Luffy pulled his shirt fabric over his face, "Oh, yuck! Whatever that is, it's dead now…"

She covered her nose and mouth with her hand and glanced up at the profile of his face. In spite of the shirt, he was sporting that silly little grin he always did when he was on an adventure. Happiness, and an aching sadness, bubbled in her chest. Happiness because she'd come to find that spending so much time with Luffy was truly...rewarding, in so many ways. Sadness because this newly discovered...friendship? Connection? Might soon be gone.

The tunnel opened up to a large cavern and he zoomed the light all around it, taking in the surroundings. It looked there were a few paths to choose from beyond this room; at least three. It was here that bones crunched thick under their feet and the smell was nauseating to the point of gagging, the air stifling and hot. He stopped before entering the room, keeping her behind him, his expression focused as he glanced around. His dial picked up on something hunkered in the corner, with glittering red eyes staring back at him, just out of the circle of light. It growled low, the sounded rumbling through the cavern and suddenly, more eyes appeared, dozens of them, maybe even hundreds.

He dared to take a few steps forward, dragging Nami with him and Luffy's eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as his light danced over the creatures in the corner. On the smaller side as far as beasts went, but still close to the size of a small bear and more than capable of taking on a full grown man. Were they cats? Dogs? Rats? It was hard to decipher just what these things were; long snouts with snarling, sharp teeth, sleek fur, angular, lithe bodies and claws as long as his fingers.

"When do you suppose is the last time those things had a decent meal?" Luffy whispered to Nami over his shoulder, his voice muffled through this shirt, "Because they're looking at us like lunch just walked through the front door."

"I'd rather not find out," she whispered back, her eyes glued to the creatures. Her hand reached for down for her weapon and he stopped her.

"Don't worry about them. They aren't going to hurt us," he assured her and with an insistence tug, he guided her through the wide cavern, their shoes crunching over the bones of dead, unlucky rodents.

"Luffy…" she said, her voice pitched, but he just kept going. The growling got louder the further they got across the room until suddenly, it snapped and dozens upon dozens of the beasts came lashing at them. Nami screamed and tried to pull back from Luffy's hand on reflex to run, to do anything, just put as much space between her and those long claws and teeth.

But he held her fast and turned his head to peg those monstrous creatures with a look so intense she felt her very insides quiver and she was frozen in place, as if she was incapable of moving unless he commanded it…

"Heel," he said and held out his other hand, pointing his index finger to the ground and suddenly, every single raving, ravenous beast stopped dead in their tracks, skidding to a halt and plopped down to the ground. Tails wagged, blood red eyes implored him, but not a single one moved from that laying position.

And just as suddenly as it came, the intensity was gone and Nami realized with a start that she had just seen him use the Emperor's Haki, really use it. She blinked at him as he regarded the animals curiously. A feeling crept through her chest and immediately and briefly, she felt like they could do anything so long as he was the captain. He was so much stronger since his training and it was fleeting moments like this that she just stopped and really _looked_ at him.

"Nope, not good eats," he said and then, with a huff of resignation on her part, she was reminded that he was most of the time just a silly man.

And just like that, he took her hand again, and they resumed walking. They came to several branches in the cave, and Nami did the deciding as to which tunnel of the cave they took. Knowing that the Chalice was to be in the lowest part of the cave, she generally took the cave that pointed towards the center of the island and downward. At some points, the tunnel had gone downward and then had sloped back up, so they'd backtracked and taken a different route. At each turn, she round the string around some rock to keep track of their trail.

If the way that Luffy handled the man-eating beasts was any indication on how the rest of the cave was going to be, it was not going to be as scary and difficult as the rumors had proclaimed. They were going into this thing far more prepared than it could be expected that anyone else had; the light dial yielded more light than a simple torch and lasted longer. Nami was debatably the most skilled navigator in the world and coupled with Luffy's lack of fear, little was deterring them.

No more animals tried to eat them and what they came upon with next was not only the vast size of the labyrinth they were navigating, but the ancient booby traps and yawning pits filled with anything from spikes to snakes to darkness. He just launched them across with his devil fruit power. At one point, Luffy has stopped her, told her to tread carefully because there was a hidden trap and suddenly, he was whisked to the ceiling, dangling from his ankle. It had taken some time to get him down. A couple of rock doors sealed like tombs had barred their paths and between Nami's brains and Luffy brawn, those posed little challenge other than a waste of time.

After three more hours, they came to the end of a tunnel, and by Nami's estimate, they were in the very center of the island. Excitement shot through her and she broke away from Luffy's hand to run ahead. A crypt door blocked her path, bigger than they'd encountered so far and she ran her hands over it, feeling for the puzzle that would release the lock. Some quick fiddling and there was a groan as the lock released and dust settled in the cracks of the door, indicating the seal had been broken.

"Luffy! Open this! Quick! I think this is it!" she demanded.

Beyond the door was a vast cavern with no other way in or out except the door they came through. The cavern glowed from phosphoric rocks and in the very center of the room was a large hole in the floor. Reflections on the ceiling told her before she even approached the edge that it was filled with water. She held out her hand for the light dial and shone its light down the hole to find that ten feet or so below the edge was indeed, water. There was nothing for it. With nothing else in the room, it looked as though she was going to have to find out if there was anything at the bottom of that pool.

She squinted, trying to see further, to see how deep the water was, but it was impossible from this height. "Well... I'm going to have to go down on my own... If it's too deep, you won't be able to follow me... Lower me down and I'll see if you can come too... The Chalice has to be in there, we're in the exact center of the island now, and this is the lowest we've gone."

He peered down the hole with Nami, and a tight expression crossed his face. That… was water down there. Ocean water. He could smell it.

Not that we could really tell from this vantage point, but he was pretty sure it was going to be higher than his knees and therefore, transforming him into a weak and rubbery mess.

He dropped the backpack from his shoulders and sat down, letting his feet hang into the hole, "I don't like you going down there alone… If anything happens to you, I can't come after you…" he glanced up at her, his eyes flitting over her in the darkness and noticed that she had her Clima-Tact strapped to her thigh. He wondered how much good it would do her down in a hole and tried to think positively and have faith in her abilities now. But it was hard when he couldn't judge what she was up against.

He had no choice. He had to let her go by herself. They didn't come this far only to be stopped by some water. He looped his arm around her waist and pulled her down to his level, her lower half dangling in the hole so that their faces were level, her hands braced against his knees.

"If that water rises, you come straight back here." He demanded from her.

Nami checked to make sure the light dial was secured in a little bag she had tied at her waist. Inside, she also had the pocket knife she used to cut him down from the trap earlier and some more rope. Her Clima-Tact was strapped to her thigh. She looked up to tell him she was ready, but he'd already wrapped his rubber arms around her waist and hauled her off her feet and started lowering her down into the hole.

He stopped, and her eyes flew up to find that his face was a few inches from hers and her body was nestled between his knees as he held her in place, then instructed her with a stern tone that she come back, no matter what.

He looked so serious, so... nervous, about sending her down, when normally Luffy was so light and carefree about everything. Her heart jumped into her throat and she bit her bottom lip, staring back at him.

"I will, Luffy. I'm not dying on this shitty island," she said firmly, and meaning it too. She had other plans for her death awaiting her.

Her impending doom must be affecting her more than she thought. Suddenly, looking at him as he started to lower her down, her hands shot out onto his knees, stopping her. "Wait!" she cried, and her heart started thundering in her chest. She couldn't stop herself if she wanted, couldn't have stemmed the emotions welling in her chest. She leaned forward and caught his lips with hers in a fierce, fast kiss.

* * *

><p>AN:

:D

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	11. Chapter 11

~Chapter Eleven~

She leaned in and gave him a hot, passionate kiss.

It jolted him right down to his toes, sending lightning striking through him. And yet, it was so fleeting and he was so shocked that when she let him go, he nearly dropped her, his Gum Gum powers rocked to the core. She went plummeting down and it took him a good heartbeat before he recovered. She was inches above the water.

He didn't apologize, his mind too stunned to think straight and he lowered her carefully into the water, seeing for himself that it was up to her waist, therefore too deep for him. She gave him a thumbs up, reassuring him that she was okay then she disappeared from sight. After a couple of seconds, even the light of her dial was gone, swallowed up by the pervasive darkness around him.

Luffy sat there, staring into the hole at the spot where she disappeared for a few heartbeats after, trying to wrap his mind around what she just did. She. Kissed. Him. He hadn't realized that they were on kissing terms, really. Though, he couldn't deny that it made his stomach feel like he just swallowed a jumping bean. What had she done that for? Luck, desperation? The thought that she was heading into something dangerous and scary, or simply impulse?

He couldn't be sure.

There was nothing he could do but wait now, impatiently as always, swinging his feet and tapping them against the rock below him. He couldn't see much; all he had were his ears to guide him. He could hear the water just feet below him, swirling and churning quietly. He kept reminding himself to have some faith in her. She'd come back. It wouldn't be long now…

Time was incomprehensible in that dark cave with its eerie glow. Every now and then, he would see her light flicker and she would appear again, explaining she was trying some other tunnel. Then, she'd disappear again. He could have been sitting there for minutes or hours, he didn't know, but it was a large sound that startled him, a sucking sound like a plunger in a bath. He glanced down, his nerve endings jumping. That sound… came from below him.

"Nami?" he called out, leaning forward slightly. He couldn't see anything, no approaching light, no body swishing through water and certainly no reply. Silence fell again.

A shorter time later, he heard it again, louder, more distinct and more rumbling. Literally, the ground rumbled underneath him. "Nami!" he shouted again, more insistently. He didn't like the sound of water like that. A thought occurred to him and his heart fell into his stomach. Carefully, he stretched a hand down and with a jolt of panic, he felt water. Closer, closer than it had been when he dropped her down.

The water was rising. Steady and swift like the tide.

Oh shit… oh shit… if the water was rising…

"NAMI!" he leaned his head into the hole and hollered at the top of his lungs. She was going to get trapped down there, "NAMI! Time to GO!" he reeled his shoulder back and fired his arm into the tunnel, delving through the water and feeling around. But without a visual, he had no idea where she went once she left his line of sight. And he couldn't keep any part of him submerged for too long…

He snapped his arm back, feeling the effects of the water hitting him already. It was getting higher… his heart raced. He called for her again. The water brushed his toes. He scooted back. It was rising faster… it was right below the lip of the hole…

When it bubbled over, he had to move. He couldn't stand in the water. He backed up as the water spread across the floor, "NAMI!" he called her name again, his tone frantic. Water… water was his enemy. He wasn't afraid for himself; he was afraid of not being able to help her. It was such a helpless feeling. He couldn't see, couldn't hear, couldn't reach out to feel for her...

* * *

><p>Nami felt the water engulf her toes, and shuddered as she dropped in to her waist. It was COLD. But not too bad, since the air was relatively warm. She gave Luffy the thumbs up, and glanced around quickly before heading down the closet tunnel. There were a few tunnels, and she would have to check them all.<p>

The water made her movement slow, difficult. Soon, she was panting as she moved to the second, and then third tunnels. Nothing. She was meeting dead ends at every turn. Every time, she had to turn around and try a different route from the beginning. She would compulsively check on Luffy, see his sandaled feet dangling over the edge and she would purposely wipe that fluke kiss from her head. She had no time to dwell on analyzing it.

She picked up her pace in the fourth tunnel as she felt the water starting to rise. The tide…

Her heart rate was racing as the slugged her way back and through the fifth and last tunnel, and halfway through, the water got too high for her to be able to walk. She swam in short bursts, using the light dial to light the way under the tunnels.

Soon… she was so close! Her head was getting increasingly closer to the ceiling of the tunnels. She had to find something soon, right? This was the place, the location, every ounce of research led here, to this cave and all the traps and secrecy led to this dangerous maze of water-logged tunnels. She had to be close.

Dead end. She dove underneath the water and shined her light on the floor and there was simply nothing. There were no more left to try. This was the end. Feeling sick not just from lack of air, Nami surfaced and smashed her crown against the rock. The water was rising fast. It must be connected to the tide somehow. She had to get out.

She was a good swimmer, but she had to hold her breath for an awfully long time. Panicked and driving forward on adrenaline, she thought her lungs were going to burst when she broke the surface. She gasped for her life, feeling weak and rubbery, her lungs burning, "Luffy..!" she gasped, her voice a desperate, hoarse cry.

* * *

><p>The water was brushing against his ankles when he heard the best sound in the world. His name. Gasped from her lips as she pulled herself out of the water.<p>

"Jeezus, Nami!" he hollered, reaching out and grabbing her by the collar of her shirt and whipping her out of the water, "Way to cut it close!" his heart was hammering in his chest. It became apparent instantly that she came back empty handed.

"We can come look later today," he assured her.

"Luffy…" she gasped, but he wasn't listening and the words died right in her throat anyway. The ground rumbled below their feet and simultaneously, they both slowly backed away as the water lapped anxiously at their feet.

"Move…" she whispered and he barely registered the warning and she tugged his hand, "Luffy! Move!"

Just then, the hole she came out of erupted with water, like a cork sprung from a bottle of champagne. His eyes widened as the water played out in slow motion. It columned up, then began to rain down in hard pellets before it arched and came rushing towards them like a tsunami.

"Holy SHIT!" he told her, grabbing her hand and making a run for it. Behind them, the water swirled and churned like a tidal wave, chasing them out of the cave, sucking and pulling. He pushed her faster, running with everything he had, dragging her along like a rag doll. There seemed to be no end to it. The water raged, like the ocean had suddenly decided to flush the cave. He could smell the salt, feel the damp spray on his skin.

"Faster!" he urged her, pulling her, before giving up on her speed and hauling her over his shoulder. The water was catching him around the ankles, tripping him, making the journey treacherous. He gum gummed around corners, leapt them over yawning gaps, following their string back through the winds and weaves.

What had taken them hours to traverse with care and patience they made it through in minutes, the water licking their heels. They passed through the cave that had housed the ravenous creatures and it was empty. He had no time to wonder where the beasts went; all he could think about was that they were close to the entrance now.

It caught him around the knees and he went down hard and swift, faster than touching a sea stone, taking her down with him. The water churned and pushed them, tumbling them head over heels. It was all he could to keep a hold of her. She was his lifeboat right now… he couldn't get his limbs to cooperate…

* * *

><p>AN:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	12. Chapter 12

~Chapter Twelve~

"_I know that you can tell when I start to let my hope fade away… I need to catch myself and open my ears to hear you calling my name." Forever -Fireflight_

The water caught up with them and it was like being sucked under on the beach in a strong current. Nami instinctively closed her arms around Luffy's waist and held him close to her body as she kicked instinctively, to little avail. The current was too strong and pushed them rapidly forward in a desperate spin.

Finally, they burst from the mouth of a cave and tumbled across the ground until they came to a stop by the edge of the forest, soaked, gasping, and cold. Nami's teeth were chattering, her body was freaking out, and to make matters worse, she needed to take a pill as a fever started to spike in her, despite her manic shivering, from the withdrawals.

She released Luffy, falling back onto her back and coughing up water. Rolling over onto her front, she pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, closed her eyes as a wave of dizziness threatened to bowl her over, then finally opened her eyes.

Lying on the damp ground below her, was her packet of pills, the little flap open, and three pills laying out on the ground.

Her heart stopped in her chest. Literally, stopped beating for a full moment as horror engulfed her, deep seated cold fear shooting through her belly.

"No…" she gasped, the sound barely a whisper.

She sat back and frantically snatched up the packet, and poured out the rest of the pills into her hand. She counted, her heart racing, her lungs seizing. She stopped and counted again, panic rising.

She'd lost some pills.

Her free hand shot out and collected all of the pills on the ground with shaking fingers. She shoved them in to the packet, tucked the packet into her pocket, and shot to her feet.

"No. No. No. No no no no…." She said under her breath as she backtracked towards the cave, desperately searching for the pills. She spent a whole ten minutes searching the ten foot by ten foot area of land now soaked with sea water.

Nothing.

Nami sank to her knees, dug her hand into the damp dirt, and closed her eyes as tears leaked out. She'd lost so many... she wouldn't make it back to Watcher... for the antidote... for more pills…

And there was no Chalice. She'd searched everywhere in that god-forsaken cave. Without the Chalice, there was no hope for her, no hope for the girls. She sucked back her tears, trying to keep it together for Luffy, and stared hard at the ground, holding back her tears until she could move again.

She was trapped. She was trapped forever to that man…

* * *

><p>They burst forth from the cave entrance, skidding across the ground. Nami held onto him like a godsend and when they finally came to a stop, she rolled away from him, coughing her lungs out while he did the same. Ugh. Water.<p>

It took him a couple of heartbeats to pull himself together, for the dizziness to fade and the fatigue to subside. He sat up gingerly, hand pressed to his forehead, his hat dangling over his shoulders. That… was a close call.

It was then that noticed that Nami had gone white as a sheet. She scooped something off the ground and saw that it was those freaky, mysterious little pills she was taking. Some had clearly fallen out of her pocket during their rough and tumble. With shaking fingers, she poured the contents into her palm and started counting them. She paused, recounted and what color remained in her face vanished. She suddenly stood up and started pacing the ground, her eyes trained to the dirt, searching, which he found odd because he knew that she didn't have the Chalice when she surfaced from that hellish hole. Was she looking to see if she dropped those little drugs?

"Nami?" he said her name, pitched in inquiry. She ignored him and her actions only spiked his curiosity. What the HELL was she taking medications for? It was irksome and it was really starting to make him panic for her, his stomach tightening, "Nami!"

She fell to her knees and he shot to his feet, slipping over the wet grass and leaves over to her. She was digging her fingers into the dirt, her slim frame shaking and quivering like mad. He dropped to his knees in front of her and grabbed her soaked shoulders, "Woman! What is going on with you? Tell me what's wrong!" she wasn't so easily upset like this, upset in a way that wasn't anger, but powerful, tense emotion. She was snap-fire by nature, but this was something different. Something was horribly wrong.

"We can look for the Chalice later, once the tide goes down," he said it even though he had a feeling that this wasn't just about seeking the cup of youth. It was an attempt to raise her spirits a little.

* * *

><p>Her heart, if possible, sunk even lower, and as her eyes lifted up to Luffy's, a chilling, horrible empty stare took over her eyes.<p>

She suddenly pushed herself to her feet, and turned her back to him. She desperately pulled the packet of pills out from her pocket, and took one, swallowing it hard and closing her eyes, tilting her head back and drawing in a breath.

"Not... not now Luffy, okay? I just... let's walk back to the boat... we need to sail right now. I have no choice...you have to come with me... we need to leave... right now."

And with that, she started walking around from him, towards the forest and down the path that would lead to the village and then the boat. She stumbled often, her legs shaky, her body still exhibiting some withdrawals as the pill took time to take effect.

* * *

><p>Something wasn't just wrong. There was a moment, she flipped her eyes up to his and this deep feeling washed over him, so powerful that it stopped his breath.<p>

Finality. Whatever was driving her before, this secretive, tense, fierce determination for whatever cause, it just snuffed out.

Whatever it was, she was giving up. And he could see the horror that knowledge gave her in the depths of her burgundy eyes.

She stood up like a shot and turned around, tromping back through the woods, demanding that they set sail and give up on heading back into the cave. He rose to his feet too, and stood rooted to the spot as she started to walk away from him. If he didn't follow her, she would leave him behind.

It hit him hard; he realized he didn't even care what the back-story was, what the reason was or anything for her strange behavior. What it came down to is that he knew she was in deep trouble with someone or something and she wasn't asking for help. Not even in a covert, cryptic way that would take him days to figure out. She was just tight-lipped. He wanted to help her, to save her from whatever turmoil it was. He just wanted to hear her say, "Luffy… I need help…"

He would drop everything. No questions asked, he was that concerned about her wellbeing.

He chased after her, catching up with her and grabbing her arm, "No… Stop, wait. Turn around and look at me." he demanded, spinning her around and pinning her there with his hands on her shoulders, "You are in trouble," he started, "I don't care what kind of trouble anymore. But you are NOT about to give up on it. I will help you, whatever it is," he ducked his head a little to get a good look at her shadowed face, "I want to help you, Nami."

* * *

><p>She could hear Luffy's sandals hitting the wet ground as he ran up behind her. She wasn't expecting him to grab her, but when he did, and spin her around to face him too, she went tense, her shoulder going up, her face going tight and shadowed as she tilted her head forward.<p>

His fierce words made her heart swell, made her shake more, but only because she was holding back more tears, tears of... she didn't know... Maybe a little happy, but mostly... despairing.

She reached out to grab his shirt with both of her hands, and suddenly she couldn't hold it back anymore.

She leaned forward and buried her face in his chest, trying to hold back the tears, but her strength slowly wavered, and she fell apart into his shirt, piece by piece, until she was outright crying, clinging to him, her heart in her throat, her body trembling against his.

His warmth, the feel of his hard body, helped to steady her. He was so... well, he was her rock. Despite being a rubber man, he was so stubborn and... secure, he was rock solid.

She pulled back her tears with strength garnered from the feel of his body, with the weight of his words. She had no choice but to bring him with her; her previous plan to dump him along the way and pick him up later washed away with the lack of a Chalice to secure her freedom. And the lack of drug to keep her going long enough to drop him anywhere. She didn't know what was going to happen when Straw Hat Luffy showed up at Redgrove with her…

_ "Oh, and Nami, my dearest. Should you run crying to your crewmates, if you bring the Strawhats here, know that I will kill every – single – villager on this island. And your nakama too. I will suck out their shadows and leave them to burn in the morning sun. Capisce?"_

No, she knew what was going to happen. It was inevitable at this point; disaster was pending.

"The chalice... wasn't there, Luffy... I managed to see everything, before I almost d-drowned…" She drew in a breath to steady herself. She borrowed some of his strength and tried not to feel like her whole life was falling apart.

"Things are going to get bad... I can't explain it just now... I need... to catch my breath, okay? Gather my thoughts. I promise... I promise to tell you on our way... to Redgrove." She whispered into his chest, her head down the whole time, buried in his shoulder, her lips inadvertently brushing against his neck occasionally as she spoke.

* * *

><p>One minute, she was looking as stubborn as ever and then the next, she gripped his shirt in both her hands and the tears started falling, those desperate tears that clenched his heart and stopped his breathing as she buried her face into his chest. Body shaking, hyperventilation, all he could do was wrap his arms around her shoulders and prop his chin on the top of her head, as if by standing still and holding her tight, he could squeeze out all her problems.<p>

She told him the Chalice wasn't there, so there was no sense going back for it. He wondered why she wanted it so desperately, but resigned to not thinking about it. She would tell him, he was certain, when she was ready.

"I'm not going back to the crew without you," he told her quietly when she calmed down to soft tremors against him. His shirt was soaked through by her tears and her voice was muffled against his shoulder. He more or less could feel her lips moving against his skin and that alerted him that she was speaking, "So I'll go with you to this place and kick some ass for you so we can get back to our crew," he tilted his head to the side so that he could see the profile of her tear-stained face, "I'll take care of you, I promise," he offered her a smile, took his hat off his head and plopped it on hers. For some reason, he did that when she was upset, like wearing straw hat would make her feel better. He wasn't sure when the habit started.

He didn't want to let her go; it felt so much safer to hold onto her, so that she couldn't slip away from him, but eventually, he unwound his arms from her and grabbed her hand, "Let's go," he said, leading her through the jungle, his fingers entangled in hers, needing to hold onto her somehow. He wasn't sure if it was for him because he liked it or if it was for her, because she needed the anchor. Either way, he didn't let go.

A/N:

Fasten your seat belts, boys and girls. It's about to get _bumpy_…

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	13. Chapter 13

~Chapter Thirteen~

Back at the skiffs, the villagers sent them off, all of them thrilled and terrified that Luffy and Nami were able to get into the Cave of Darkness and back out again with no injuries.

"You certainly have some luck with you," Old Man Mosa said with a chuckle.

Luffy grinned, "I'm the luckiest guy in the ocean."

They were given a sack filled with delicious food and some extra supplies to send them off safely through the turbulent reefs and out into the open ocean again. He was perched on the figure head, staring out into the sea, a pensive expression on his face. He glanced back at Nami and watched her as she studied a map. He had a lot on his mind; mainly concerning her and the demons she seemed bent on facing solo. But that would figure itself out. She would tell him all about it between now and their destination to this island named Redgrove.

Instead, his mind flipped back to their strange and desperate kiss and how much it shocked him. He could almost feel something simmering in the air between them, something unspoken. But then again, maybe he was imagining things. He wasn't exactly the brightest when it came to stuff like this.

"Why did you kiss me?" he blurted out suddenly, unable to keep the thought to himself. It was a sin, he supposed. He couldn't not talk about what was on his mind.

* * *

><p>She'd gone kinda numb, in the past few hours. She'd been comforted by Luffy's hand holding hers as he led them towards their skiffs, but she was also... cold, on the inside. Everything felt uncertain and yet, doomed at the same time. She was doomed. Or fucked, to use her nakamas' words.<p>

At the skiffs, she was glad to see the villagers as they sent them off, then became quiet as she navigated them out and then past the reefs. Then, she settled back to look at the island map of Redgrove again, at least, the part she'd managed to finish before Watcher had found her.

"Why did you kiss me?"

Luffy blurted out the words, and Nami went stiff, heat rising to her cheeks. She kept her head down, to avoid letting him see said blush.

"I… just, ya know... for luck... I just felt like it," she snapped at him, relying on her temper to deflect the situation a little. She didn't know what to do with that kiss, what she'd expected from it.

It had been... exhilarating, amazing.

But she knew better... her captain was so clueless that he literally had been unaffected by the Love-Love Fruit... If the most beautiful woman in the world couldn't tempt the straw hat captain, she had about as much of a chance as Chopper did.

Yep. She was fucked.

* * *

><p>He was unaffected by the rise in her temper, used to it in fact. It didn't deter him one bit from his line of thinking.<p>

So, for luck?

"Well, I am the luckiest," he reasoned to her out loud, sliding off the ram-shaped figure head and coming down to sit across from her. She was looking at an incomplete map of the island they were heading to, Redgrove, something she apparently was in the middle of constructing before something, or someone, had prevented her from finishing it.

A crazy thought jumped into his head. She was quiet again, had been for a couple of hours, like she'd pulled back from the world, reserved like she was on the Thousand Sunny. He'd come to associate this with her unhappiness, like she was so upset on the inside that she had no outlet for it to come out.

He leaned in closer to her, physically scooting his body until his knees were brushing against hers. Faster than she could stop him, he tipped her chin up and gave her a brief, exhilarating kiss, that same feeling shooting down his spine and tingling his insides.

"You could use a little more luck," he told her, a flush creeping over his cheeks. He scooted back from her with a silly grin on his face and gummied over to the figure head again, settling into his previous position, his back to her. But his hands… he tapped them against his knees, feeling jittery on the inside.

* * *

><p>Nami couldn't help but notice her out of the corner of her eye as he scooted closer to her. She kept her head down regardless, not sure she could look at him yet.<p>

But then he did THE most unexpected thing.

He scooted even closer, his knees brushing against hers, and then suddenly he shot up and fused their lips together in a surprise kiss, just as fierce as the one she'd delivered to him earlier. It had her heart stuttering in her chest, then falling into a full gallop as her stomach tightened and butterflies brushed against her insides.

She was so stunned, she could only stare at his back as he whipped back, and then went to go sit on the figurehead, mouthing off about the kiss giving her more luck, and acted as if he'd just handed her a fish or something. Calm as day.

She almost fell out of the boat.

Luffy... just kissed her? Her eyes flickered away from his back, down to her map, which she couldn't really see anymore anyways.

Part of her however, truly considered the fact that he was so clueless, he really did think a kiss meant a way to give luck to another person, and nothing more. That thought had her spirits sinking a little, but she wasn't able to see a good look at his eyes to read him before he'd left.

It was possible... no... she couldn't think about this right now. The idea that Luffy actually wanted to kiss her was WAY over her ability to handle given the present situation and the fact that she might die. It would be so unfair.

So she licked her lips, closing her eyes for a moment from the lingering taste of him, then tried to focus again on the map, needing to know the layout of everything in case they needed to move fast.

* * *

><p>Two days on the open ocean living in a small boat was enough to drive anyone crazy. There was little room to stretch and the amount of tension that was building up between them, well, when they encountered a large island, Luffy insisted they dock the skiffs.<p>

Besides, if he was gonna be kicking some ass in a couple of days, he wanted to party it up now in case he was laid up afterwards.

They entered the climate of this island and it came immediately apparent that this was a warm, summer climate island. The air was humid hot and slightly tropically. A large coastal town greeted them as they slipped into the pier and tied up the Mini Merry and the skiff. The sign on the pier said _Nadajima_ and a wooden map nearby indicated multiple other towns further inland. Apparently, this was not only a large island, but a healthily occupied one too.

"Geez, this place is as big as Alabasta…" Luffy commented as they headed into the main part of town, "And they dress really strange…" everyone around them was wearing elaborate robes with a sash around the waist. Women had on brightly colored face paint with hair thingies and children darted about with party favors.

"There's a festival or something going on," Nami told him, her eyes pinging around to take in everything, "Those robes must be part of the costumes."

Luffy glanced around and saw what she meant. Decorations lined the streets and vendor stands were brightly colored. Everyone seemed to be in an elevated mood. Great! He loved a good party. Maybe there would be a parade or something and lots of food.

Nami tugged his arm to get him to pause for a minute while she examined some sort of poster. He leaned against the wall next to her, arms crossed over his chest, watching the people pass by. He was just thinking that they should get some of those fun robe costumes too when a man a little older than he was walked by and strapped across his back was a gigantic sword.

"Nami!" he gasped in envy, "Look! That guy has a SWORD! I want a sword…" he made a face of troubled longing, "Let's dress up and join the party!"

* * *

><p>AN:

_I spoil you all so much. :) Also, I wanted to answer a question from one of my reviewers. They asked why the tribe lied to them about the location of the Chalice. The idea is that the Chalice is a legendary treasure that the tribe of Kuuva has been guarding for hundreds of years. Like anything that is legendary, it is also mysterious and no one has actually seen the treasure. Legend says that the Chalice is located in the Cave of Darkness, but as the tribe is forbidden to go there, they have not entered nor have they seen the treasure. It can be assumed that because Nami didn't find it that a) there is no Chalice of Youth and it is just simply a fairy tale or b) someone else took it. Either way, the tribe did not lie to them and Nami is empty handed. Hope that clears up some confusion!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	14. Chapter 14

~Chapter Fourteen~

Nami had wrestled with the idea of telling him everything for the past two days, but somehow hadn't been able to. She held on to the knowledge, afraid of what would happen if she told him, and not only because of the consequences, but also because by not admitting it to him, she also didn't have to admit it to herself.

She was barely going to have enough pills to make it to Redgrove. In fact, she might not have enough as it was, but when Luffy landed them on a giant island that seemed to be celebrating a festival, she decided not to push them to continue their journey. As it is, she'd stressed that speed was very important, and they'd made some wonderful headway, so she said nothing as they disembarked and headed into town.

Part of her craved this...well, she wasn't sure what to call it. A break? A party?

Her fate was sealed, she had nothing left, so she might as well live it up. Especially considering she might not even make it to Redgrove.

So when Luffy exclaimed excitedly about the strange yet beautiful garments that many of the women, and many men too, were wearing, she took only a second to hesitate before she grabbed Luffy hand and dragged him over to the closet clothing shop.

"We need some robes... those things. Two of them, one for me, and one for him," Nami said, her voice lacking the normal hesitation it held when parting with money for goods. When the guy gave her a price after a quick look over, she didn't even bother to haggle. She just withdrew the money from her pocket and gave it to the guy. He seemed just as surprised, but hurried to get their purchase together with a perk to his step that told her she'd just bought these kimonos, as he called them, for a really bad price.

She didn't even care. She waited for that jealous need to guard money to rise up in her, but... nothing.

He brought out two kimono and as Luffy was hustled away to get his ensemble put together, Nami got a closer look at her garment. It was of a delicate and fine white silk, with large orange and red koi fish swirling over the fabric amid blue flowers that mimicked the waves of the ocean. She was enchanted by it, and allowed the female sales associate to lead her in the back to show her how everything was put together. The process was longer than she'd expected, and when all was said and done, she emerged wearing the beautiful kimono with a red obi tight elegantly. The associate even put her hair up in an elegant twist and used some hair pieces with dangling ornaments, similar to what many of the ladies had been wearing.

She stared at herself in the mirror, her face slightly pale, her eyes empty, for a full minute before the associate cleared her throat delicately and murmured, "The lady is very beautiful...very elegant indeed."

Emotion welled up sharp and strong in her chest and she glanced at the associate as she struggled to bottle it all back down before finally clearing her throat, throwing on a smile, and thanking the girl politely. She seemed taken back, and bowed multiple times until Nami physically stopped her.

Finally, she emerged from the women's changing room and back into the shop, a delicate umbrella waiting next to a large katana.

"Some suggested accessories for this evening?" the sales clerk offered her immediately as she stepped out. Without even considering what they would possible be used for, she agreed and gave him more money. The clerk bowed to her several times, and as she reached out for the parasol, he stopped her, reached down, and brought from below the counter an even nicer parasol. It was white, with fine lace and delicate embroidered cherry blossoms on the silk.

It was so beautiful that she didn't have the heart to turn him down. She reached out, took it with delicate hands, running her fingers over the soft fabric, mesmerized.

* * *

><p>It all happened in such a blur around him. Nami didn't even hesitate to drag him into the clothing boutique much to his delight and started in on demanding some of those fancy robes – kimono – the shop owner called them. In what seemed like a blink of an eye, Luffy was whirled into a dressing room to get fitted into one.<p>

It was so exciting that he didn't have a second to contemplate the obscurity of Nami's behavior. A male sales associate fitted him into a bright red kimono with menacing black dragons all over it and golden clouds. To complete the outfit, a navy blue sash with silver etchings was tied around his waist, leaving a deep V of chest exposed, but it was cool. Then, he'd get to display his awesome battle wounds.

The associate tried to take his hat from him and he may have come off somewhat hostile in his vehemence to keep it, barking a little and startling the poor man. He got to trade his sandals in though, for some that were made of bamboo and matched his robe.

He studied his reflection in the mirror, feeling particularly badass in this kimono thing. He was thinking that Nami was being awfully generous to buy him one of these and suddenly, that occurred to him as strange. Nami didn't just throw her money away like that. He brought his mind back a couple of minutes, to when she dragged him into the store. No haggling, no bartering. If there was one thing about her that everyone knew, it was that she was tight with her treasure. Right down to the last beri.

He knew that something was wrong with her, that she was in some kind of trouble. Further than that, he didn't know much. But this little exchange… a phrase popped into his head. He couldn't place where he'd heard it before, but there it was, _"If you can't take it with you…"_

Luffy came out of the dressing room and the first thing he spotted was Nami, holding a parasol in one hand and running her other hand over the material. He didn't have to see the front of her robe to know that she was devastating in it. White with scarlet Koi fish all over it and flowers of water, she had a red sash around her waist and tied into a neat box bow between her shoulder blades.

Then, she turned around and he got the full effect of her ensemble. And his heart did this crazy flip flop in his chest. The Mystery Feeling…

"Sir, some accessories for the evening?" the store owner presented him with a large katana, easily as big if not bigger than Zoro's swords. Luffy tore his eyes away from her and to the man, his expression changing from rapture to glee in a millisecond.

"Awesome! I'll take it!" he exclaimed, trembling with excitement as it was tied over his shoulder and across his back. His hat tipped off his head and dangled around his back, "Nami! How cool, right? Let's go out now! Hey, ossan! Where can we get something to eat around here?"

"There is a nice sushi bar across the street, actually, that tailors to tourists and people your age," he smiled, "And they have fine food and sake."

Mmmm… sake… "Great! Let's go drink!" Luffy turned to Nami, "You love to drink. It'll be fun."

* * *

><p>Nami turned around when Luffy exited the dressing room, and was surprised by the expression of... awe, on his face. It was a strange sort of awe that wasn't his normal gawking stare. But in the blink of an eye, it was gone, and he turned to face the sword that she'd gotten him.<p>

A small smile, gone so fast Luffy didn't see, turned the corners of her lips up.

"Let's go drink!"

Drinking... sake... that sounded... perfect.

That's exactly what she needed right now when her whole world was falling apart. She could just... spend the night in a drunken bliss. Forget all her troubles, just for the evening.

"Yes, let's," she agreed, and marched up to him to take him arm, all man-handling and yet curiously lady-like, and marched him right now of the door and onto the street, "Wait, since when do you drink?" Luffy drank sake as rarely as Zoro managed to out drink her.

He laughed, "What party doesn't include alcohol? Besides, who else are you gonna drink under the table without Zoro here?"

Her thoughts exactly.

It was twilight now, and the temperature had fallen to a gentle warmth. She pulled him closer, on impulse, and with the free hand, pulled up the parasol and opened it with a deft flick of her wrist.

"I challenge you to a drinking game then. Whoever drinks the most, wins! And you drink every time someone says your name, eh, Luuuuuffy?" She said smoothly, winked and strode ahead of him and into the bar.

She marched right up to the bar, pulled her purse from the arm pockets, and slapped down some beris. "Two shots of sake, good man, and keep them coming."

The bartender blinked at her, glanced down at the money, then was galvanized into action by the sight of the many beris she'd laid down. Enough for four shots, at least.

Smiling a little viciously, she turned back towards Luffy and held out a shot to him. As soon as he took it, she shot hers back smoothly then slammed the glass down on the bar.

"Luffy."

* * *

><p>AN:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	15. Chapter 15

~Chapter Fifteen~

"_Shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots shots! EVERYBODY!"__- LMFAO_

He knew he couldn't hold his alcohol like her and Zoro, but damned if he didn't like to party anyway.

She laid down a shit pile of beris and before he could consider her behavior as strange yet again, the bartender came back with four shots. She raised her glass to him, slammed it down, leaned along the bar with her chin in her hand and said one word.

"Luffy…"

He matched her slow, wicked smirk and snatched the shot from the countertop, "I like your style, woman," he grinned and tipped his head back to swallow the sake in one fell swoop.

The bartender came back with two more shot glasses and after Nami laid down a few more beris, things started to go downhill fast. She was brutal; at every turn she possibly could, she said his name and forced him to take a drink. He retaliated, but unfortunately for him, he started to forget as people started milling in and the sake started taking effect.

There was a little catch in this game that he didn't stop to think about before he actively and enthusiastically agreed to it; Luffy made friends. Fast and swift. So once the first person came up to them and introduced themselves, it was over. He'd lost the game and he didn't even know it.

"Luffy! Come over here and lookit this!"

Shot.

"Oh my god! Luffy!"

Shot.

"Hey! Straw Hat!"

Shot.

He staggered back over to Nami with a silly grin on his face and plopped on the stool heavily beside her, "Hey! Ossan!" he summoned the bartender, "Sake, right here," he tapped two fingers against the countertop and turned to her.

"Nammmmiiiiiii…." He slurred her name, "First of all, shot!" he slid the shot glass to her, "Secondly, why are you not dancing and singing with us?" he snapped his head up when someone called his name and he laughed, taking his shot in stride, "Maybe you need some food! Ossan! Food!" he hollered again.

* * *

><p>As the night progressed, Nami became VERY drunk. She lingered near the bar, always seeking out the next shot. She could hold her alcohol like a pro, a veteran of the drinking game in all its forms, especially when money was involved.<p>

But now, she just wanted to feel... happy.

So she drank more, and more. Soon she was swaying a little on the barstool, and took a minute to react when Luffy suddenly appeared next to her and offered her a shot after drawling her name.

A shiver went down her spine. Part of her had proposed this game in particular became she liked the way he said her name. Now, inebriated and at a loss, it turned her on a little. She shifted on the stool, then took the shot he offered her.

What the hell, right?

"Luffy, I don't need food," she told him dryly as he demanded food, but she suspected that he just wanted food for himself. His arm brushed against hers as he shifted in his drunkenness, and a thrill went through her stomach. She shot to her feet, then almost toppled over and her world spun from the alcohol. She shook it off after a moment and reached out for one last shot, tipping it back even though no one had uttered her name.

"I... need to get something from the room I booked... keep having fun, Luffy," she lied, looking away, her expression a little darkened for a moment before she smiled for him to hide the fact that she was drowning her sorrows in sake.

And if she was remembering them, then the alcohol wasn't flipping working. Damn it.

She turned away from him, her kimono swishing elegantly around her feet and swaying beautifully as she walked away, and up the stairs towards the room. She pushed open the door stepped inside, promptly forgot to close the door in her absentminded drunkenness, and then stood in the center of the room, staring down at the lovely parasol on her bed.

As she reached down to brush her fingers against the satiny material, her kimono, loosened slightly over the period of the night, slid from her shoulder, exposing her slightly tanned creamy flesh.

* * *

><p>He watched her as she headed upstairs to the room they'd booked for the night, a scowl on his face. He was distantly aware that he was very, very inebriated and that he had a soaring good mood going on, but he was also perturbed by her. Maybe it was because he was thinking about her before he got really drunk…<p>

She was usually the first one to get into a fight or something or argue or hit him over the head. In that split second decision, he stood abruptly from the barstool, teetering unsteadily and headed after her. He tripped on the edge of his kimono robe on the way up the stairs, his arms windmilling forward to catch himself against the top step. He chuckled to himself and used the wall for support and burst her room.

"Nami," he slurred her name pointedly, "You…" the rest of his phrase died a little when his brain caught up to his eyes. She was standing in the middle of the room, staring at the bed with a strange expression on her face, the collar of her kimono dipped over her shoulder a little. Something about the sight of skin had his nerves crawling with awareness, his whole body feeling flushed and warm.

"You are upset," he remembered the rest of his sentence and stalked her across the room with zero coordination and no sense of boundaries. He pushed her against the wall, his arms braced on either side of her and his elbows extended, "You need to be happy. What can I do to make you happy?" his eyes jumped from her eyes to her lips and back up to her eyes again, "What if I kiss you? Will that make you happy?" he wasn't sure if she liked to be kissed, but if she felt anything like he felt when he kissed her, that would certainly raise her spirits.

* * *

><p>The parasol was so delicate, so... soft. Something about it made her sad... perhaps because she simply loved the parasol and wanted to keep it, but the idea of permanent objects in her life seem less than secure.<p>

She was about to move it off the bed when suddenly Luffy appeared behind her, loudly, and she turned to see that he was most definitely drunk. "Luffy, maybe you…"

He interrupted her, stumbling forward and pushed her back against the wall, crowding her with his body, caging her in with his arms. A flush of heat went through her, and her inebriated mind was too stunned to react at all.

She just stared up at him, frozen in place, as his eyes flickered down to her lips and then back to her eyes. He had this... curious expression on his face. Like a part of him was spurred on simply by the need to make his nakama happy, and another part... a curious, need-to-know expression.

A desire… an eagerness, unmasked by his drunken frivolity.

Her breath caught in her throat. Without thinking, lacking the ability to sensor herself right now, she reached out and grabbed the front of his kimono, curling her fingers into the rich fabric, and slowly pulled it apart, revealing the giant cross-shaped scar on his chest.

Her heart hammered in her chest, her head swam from a heady concoction of lust and alcohol. She pulled at the kimono until the lapels slid off his shoulders like one had slid off of hers. The material slithered out of her fingers to pool around his waist and over the sword that was tucked into his obi.

Her fingers traced the lines of his scar in the quiet between them, only the sound of their breathing interrupting the moment. Her eyes finally flickered up to his, and she was lost now. She was drunk, had nothing to lose... Maybe being drunk off her ass as she was gave her a little different perspective. There was no denying that she had it bad for her captain and when one's life had an expiration date like hers undoubtedly did, one took advantage of opportunities when they knocked.

Speaking of taking advantage; Luffy was drunk as shit. Was it low of her, to even be considering such things when his ability to make a rational decision was shot?

She thought about it for a second, then decided that Luffy could handle himself, even against her.

"Yes, Luffy... that would make me happy," she murmured, her fingers trailing down the center of his stomach, over the ridges of his abs in an absentminded action as she gazed up at Luffy, his face mere inches from her own.

* * *

><p>All she did was grasp the lapels of his kimono robe and push the material from his shoulders and it was enough to awaken his body. He felt tingly in the inside, like he'd just cozied up to a lightning strike and the electricity was making him stand on end.<p>

She said nothing to him and in the lull of the moment, as she traced the tips of her fingers over his ravaged body, it occurred to him that this was a serious moment though massively compromised by the fact that his brain was doing the backstroke in his skull. Whatever this encounter was, it was going to be meaningful.

"Yes, Luffy… that would make me happy…" she whispered finally, her maroon eyes darting up to his, successfully making his heart skip a beat in time.

He gave her a wicked grin, "Good, because I was gonna do it anyway…" and he kissed her. No, he claimed her. This wasn't some surprise kiss that left the other feeling lightheaded from shock. This was a melding of the mouths, a tango of tongues. It was scolding, smoldering, absolutely exhilarating. It robbed him of the little sanity he clung to and combined with the alcohol in his system, it emboldened him.

* * *

><p>AN:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	16. Chapter 16

~Chapter Sixteen~

"_Do you see… what we've done… we're gonna make such fools of ourselves."Decode – Paramore_

_***LIME WARNING***_

_That's it. You've been warned. _

He unlocked his elbows and dropped his body closer to hers. She tasted like tangerines and money, sake and… sex… that mystery feeling she always triggered in him, that tight sensation in the pit of his stomach like a thousand butterflies were brushing along his ribcage, turned molten on him and shot through him and he recognized it now, barely.

Arousal.

She was turning him on.

He tugged at the obi at her hips, failing at taking it off, but loosened it enough that it slipped down her hips and pooled onto the floor. It allowed him to take a leaf out of her book and push the outer and inner kimono from her shoulders, the material catching on her arms, still held to her by the sash inside the layers but it was enough. He caught sight of the black and gold lace that was her bra, the full swell of her breast and the temptation became unbearable. He teased his fingers along the scalloped edge of the lace before dipping his hand beneath to cup the heavy weight, so soft and supple. It made his heart stutter step in his chest.

* * *

><p>The wicked grin that spread over his face after her reply hit her in the gut like a punch. He was devastating to her. His personality, his character... it was impossible to be sad around him. He was just... well, he had always been her savior, the one she turned to for help.<p>

This was just another kind of help, wasn't it?

Her stomach twisted the moment before his lips latched onto hers, and she was stunned by the intensity of his kiss. The two kisses before paled in comparison to the fervor with which he claimed her lips with his own now.

He dropped his arms to pull closer to her, and her muddled brain was thrilled, exhilarated, by all of the sensations bombarding her. She was surrounded by his smell, his taste, the feel of his hard body as he crowded closer to her, as if his body craved the feel of hers.

It happened so fast, or rather, her brain was moving too sluggishly to keep up with what was happening. Suddenly, he'd pushed the heavy fabric of the kimono off her shoulders, urging the material down with impatient gestures, exposing her undergarments. His fingers traced the edges of her bra, and her breath seized in her lungs, her head falling back against the wall behind her.

Then his fingers dipped into the bra, sliding his hands around her breast and gently squeezing. Her breath stuttered out of her body. Her hands shot out to grab his waist, her fingers digging in as lust rode her hard. Lust intensified by the lack of inhibitions from the many shots of sake she'd consumed that evening.

She snapped, the rage of need crashing down on her like a wave. She pushed him back, using his hips to guide him, until the back of his knees hit the bed and she forcibly pushed him down onto the mattress, crawling over him as she wiggled out of the outer kimono, leaving her in the thin white silk under-kimono.

Her lips found his stomach, and she worked her way up to his chest, up his neck, and finally found his lips again. She kissed him with abandon, her hips sliding up over his, brushing their bodies closer together until lightning played over her skin with awareness.

* * *

><p>He had little control over what was happening and he was surprisingly okay with it. It didn't seem to matter what or how this conflagration got started or where it was going, only that he was surrounded by Nami and he didn't want it to ever stop.<p>

He reveled in her reactions, so sensitive and it furthered his ambitions, deepened the insatiable curiosity he lived on. She gripped his hips and pushed him backwards until the backs of his knees hit the bed and he collapsed onto it, balance compromised and she wriggled out of the elaborate outer kimono. The thin white silk one she wore underneath left little to the imagination and he could clearly see the matching set of black lingerie outlined. The vision excited him.

She crawled over him, forcing him to lie back but he kept himself propped on his elbows to watch her as she dragged her mouth over his skin, brushing her body against him on the way up to kiss him again. The spike in his adrenaline had him feeling dizzy and drunk and together with Nami's hot body, it was heady. His movements were clumsy and desperate as he untied the thin tie around her hips and tossed it to the floor. After that, her little robe came off real easy and that too, joined its companions on the floor.

She was so… sexy and he wasn't even sure if he could pin down what exactly about her made her seem so appealing to him. Women didn't excite him really, but she did. Everything about her, from her selfish tantrums to the way she could manipulate him into not saying no to her to her smoking body, just… everything.

He traced his hands over her slim shoulders and down her back, catching the hook and latch between his fingers on the way down. One hand peeled the material away and the other settled on the curve of her ass, using it as leverage to pull her closer to him, skin to skin. There was such a firestorm brewing in him and he was helpless to the burn. He had faith that she'd put it out for him before he expired from it.

He swung his leg up and over her hip, flipping her over so that he was looming over her. And he did exactly what she did to him; he tore his mouth away from her and trailed it down the column of her neck and over the swell of her breast. Something clicked in his mind and he leaned down to capture the peak in his mouth, figuring if she liked it when he touched her with his hand, she would love it with his mouth.

* * *

><p>Her brain was having difficulty keeping up with her body. She felt sloshy and wobbly, made all the more unstable by what his hands and lips were doing to her. His fingers deftly removed her bra, and suddenly she could feel her breasts springing free from the confining material, swaying in front of his eager face.<p>

The need to seduce him, to make him go as crazy as he was making her feel, overcame her. She arched her back, displaying her breasts for him temptingly as her nails lightly traced down his chest, her hair falling out of the twist and cascading around her shoulders in gentle waves.

That was right when he swung his leg up, and turned the tables on her. Her vision went a little blurry as her alcohol-soaked mind struggled to keep up the pace, and only settled back into straight lines when she was flat on her back and Luffy's mouth left a trail of fire down her throat.

She fisted her hands in the sheets below her, her breath leaving her body in a hiss as his lips trailed lower, over the swell of her breast. "Luffy…" she hissed his name, her legs shifting helplessly, her hips pressing insistently against his.

Suddenly, his lips closed over the peak of her breast, and her world was drastically altered. She gasped, her back arching, pressing her breasts up. One hand released the sheets below them and shot out to thread through his hair, holding him to her as her body begged for more.

Her breaths came in short bursts, her cheeks red with drunken lust.

More. She wanted more. All rational thoughts were gone. It didn't matter that she was in bed with her captain. It didn't matter that she might die in the next week. None of it mattered right now except for his lips on her body.

She rose up, pushing him back and rolling them over once more until she'd reclaimed her positioned on top. She straddling him with her knees and pressed him flat on his back with her hands on his shoulders. "My turn…" she whispered hotly, then leaned down to kiss him in a brief, fiery exchange before she started shifting lower, lower, her lips trailing down his chest.

She licked, nibbled, and kissed her way down his stomach, her fingers trailing down his sides until they raced ahead of her mouth and grasped the tie to his kimono, yanking it apart in hurried, impatient gestures. His hands came down like he was trying to help her and she brushed them away hurriedly. By the time her mouth caught up, she hurriedly pushed the kimono apart, exposing the tight boxer shorts that he had on underneath.

She didn't think there was ever a time when she had the privilege to see her captain strut around in his boxers. The fact that he wore ones that hugged his ass like a second skin amused her. A smile of satisfaction curved her lips. "Mmmm... delicious…" she murmured as she nuzzled the elastic waistband of his boxers. Her eyes flickered up, over the expanse of his stomach, of his chest, to let him see the lust, the desire, burning in her maroon eyes before she yanked his shorts down, wrapped her fingers around the hard length of him, and drew him, slowly, into her mouth.

Her free hand slid up to pin his hips to the bed as she suckled him greedily, her right hand pumping slowly at the base of his shaft as she moaned against his flesh.

* * *

><p>He thought he might just die. She was going to kill him. He was going up in flames, sensation overwhelming him, unlocalized and consuming. He barely had time to enjoy her reaction to him when she took the reins again and flipped them over, straddling over him, her hands flat against his shoulders. He stared up at her, his eyes drinking her in, the anticipation knotting his stomach up before she leaned down and gave him a sizzling kiss.<p>

And she moved south, her hands leading the way and ripping impatiently at his robe. She flickered her eyes up to him, brief, scalding, the heated look on her face shooting down to his core, rocking his foundation.

"Nami…" he opened his mouth to say something to her, anything, he didn't know what, his drunken mind unable to string words together when she dipped her head and sucked him into her hot mouth. He fell back against the mattress, a groan ripped from his throat. His hands went right to her coppery waves, threading through them and holding her to him as she worked him over with her hands and mouth.

It was… indescribable, so hot and molten. His whole body trembled from the force of it. He could feel everything… from her fingertips to her tongue to the sting of her teeth to her lips… his hips twisted, muscles twitching, on the cusp of something huge.

"Don't stop…" he growled in a half whisper, half plea. It was over in a half pump of her sinful hand; blinding white hot pain pleasure and he jacked off the bed, her name a harsh entreaty, his head spinning, pinpricks shooting to his toes.

He sat up fast and grabbed her, his breath labored, his cheeks flushed from drunk pleasure. He kissed her, hard, demanding, his body tight and tremors rocking through him. He tossed her down to the bed on her back again and crawled over her. His hand went right to the juncture of her legs, caressing her right through the black lace, hot and wet, which he assumed to be a good thing.

"I'm gonna do the same thing to you…" he told her with a mischievous grin, pressing his mouth to her neck below her ear.

* * *

><p>"Don't stop."<p>

Those words turned her on more than anything before. The pleasure that roughened his voice, the strain in his muscles. She could feel him tensing under her, winding tighter and tighter. Riding his wave of pleasure, she tightened her grip on him, moved faster, eager to push him over the edge.

Her tongue flickered out over the tip of him, and suddenly he went over the edge, his hips rising up despite her best efforts, her name ripped from his lips in a rough entreaty.

A sly, satisfied smile curved her lips as she licked all of him up, taking her time as his body twitched from the aftershocks rocking his body. Suddenly, he sat up, and he surprised her with the speed of his recovery.

Then again, Luffy could do anything when he put his mind to it.

He tossed her back onto the bed, and excitement shot through her womb. She propped herself up on her elbows, her mouth popping open to say something, when suddenly his hand pushed insistently against the juncture of her legs, rocking her to the core. Her words were cut off with a gasp as she fell back onto the bed, helpless to him, spreading her legs for more.

"Yes... yes... Luffy," she moaned his name, her hips shifting insistently. His threat, no, his promise that rumbled in her ear curled fire through her and she briefly wondered just _what_ kind of trouble she was getting herself into.

* * *

><p>AN:

_You may not know, but aside from writing sizzling Lunami tales, I'm a teacher by day. So let's do a reading response! I always enjoy hearing about someone's favorite part of a chapter they just read. So. What was your favorite part? A sentence that stuck out? An image that captured your attention? Tell me your favorite part so far. :)_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	17. Chapter 17

~Chapter Seventeen~

"_Sweet dreams are made of these. Who am I to disagree? I travel the world and the seven seas… Everybody's looking for something… some of them want to use you. Some of them want to be used by you. Some of them want to abuse you. Some of them want to be abused."~Eurythmics_

The first thing that Nami realized, as the layers of thick sleep slowly pulled away, was that she was massively hung over.

Her head hurt like someone had taken a jack-hammer to it. Her stomach was tight with nausea, but not that bad, considering how much she'd drank. The smell of sake bled from her very pores and she was achy all over, like she'd worked out the day before with Tikka.

It was right about then when she realized she wasn't alone. She half sat up in surprise when something next to her made a loud, obnoxious snore. The action had her glancing down and discovering that she was naked. With a squeak of surprise, she pulled the sheets up to cover herself, and turned to find…

Luffy.

All color left her face. Luffy had one arm draped over her waist and hanging down the side of the bed, long and rubbery. His face was half buried in the pillows, drool pooling around his mouth, as he half snored, half mumbled in his sleep, rolling suddenly onto his back, the long arm sliding up and over her hips until it snapped to the OTHER side of the bed to hang just a limply.

He was... also naked. The sheets were bunched around his waist, thankfully, but it was pretty obvious he wasn't clothed underneath.

With a stifled shriek, she finally shot to her feet and hurried over to the bathroom, dragging a sheet and snatching up her bag as she went. She slammed the door, dropped the sheet, and hurriedly turned the shower on. She didn't even wait for it to get warm, she shot under the cool water and let it clear the cobwebs from her brain as she shivered.

Holy... fuck.

Slowly, as she forced herself to calm down and stop hyperventilating, she started remembering clips of the night before. She had flashes of Luffy's face, harshly lined as his body tensed in climax. Flashes of his hands groping her, stroking her, until she combusted in heat. The feeling of his body pressed against hers, the sound of her name in his gravelly voice. Then – the dork – passing out right after and judging by the fact that between that moment and this one she didn't remember anything, she passed out too.

Her cheeks flushed and she buried her face in her hands with a groan. She'd had sex with her captain the night before. It was mostly hazy, the actual sex, but they'd definitely done it. Oh dear lord, they had definitely done it.

Oh man... what... the hell was she going to do? Okay, she just needed to relax and calmly think this through…

A vicious cramp tore through her stomach, and a cold flash tightened her chest. For a moment she dismissed it as more hangover symptoms, but then she realized her hands were shaking. Her eyes widened, and she swore under her breath. Withdrawal signs.

She finished her shower in record time... then she heaved her guts out into the toilet. Once that was done, she brushed her teeth, and changed back into her normal clothes. The spot above her left breast burned with awareness... she needed to take a pill, but she wasn't going to make it at this rate. She was going to have to suck up some sickness if she wanted to make it to Redgrove.

This was far more important to deal with than a one night stand with Monkey D. Luffy. She was going to have to worry about that later.

Steeling herself, she left the bathroom, only to find that Luffy hadn't even budged. Rolling her eyes, Nami carefully folded up her kimono as best she could, trying to keep her fingers from trembling too much, then left a small note telling him she'd gone to prepare the ship. Her penmanship came out less than par, considering her condition.

She had to hurry. With one last look at the naked sleeping Luffy, Nami turned away, her heart in her stomach, and hurried down to the docks. She managed to get them some more supplies, and especially health-boosting fruits and vegetables, on her way down. The shop owner had been so concerned with her feverish appearance that he'd refused to let her take them, but had instead escorted her down to the ship and loaded it for her. She was so grateful that she almost fell over as she bowed to him, the custom of gratitude on this island, apparently.

Finally, she crawled into the front seat of the Mini Merry, and laid down with a cool wet cloth over her face to wait for Luffy. She'd instructed that he be woken up within minutes of her departure; she couldn't risk that he'd sleep all day. In the meantime... her fingers itched to take the pill, but she was going to have to push herself a little more... at least another hour, before she took the pill.

* * *

><p>He was having a crazy dream. Everything was hot and hazy and he could hear heavy breathing, a whisper of his name, the brush of skin, a feverish kiss…<p>

Through the layers of fog in his brain, he heard someone knocking on the door. He rolled over with a groan and shouted something unintelligible at the offending sound until it disappeared. He grabbed the pillow and tossed it over his head to block out the sunlight filtering through the window. His head was pounding rhythmically to the beat of his heart. God, how much did he drink last night? He didn't remember anything…

He nestled his face into the pillow and took a deep breath of relief. The material smelled nice… like tangerines and money…

Luffy rolled over again and sat up on his elbows, eyes lidded with half exhaustion, half still incredibly drunk. Wait a second, where was Nami?

Flashes from the night before crept through his mind, blurry and glazed, more feeling than anything solid. He remembered following Nami upstairs and kissing her and after that… things got real fuzzy and he almost didn't believe his own memory. Skin… kissing… panting… his stomach tightened. And oh man… did she…?

He sat up, the sheets catching around his hips and he propped his elbows against his knees and dropped his spinning head into his hands as he tried to recapture what happened a few hours ago. It was like trying to hold onto water; the images were slipping away faster than he could process them, leaving him back where he was in the beginning. Clips and phrases of hot skin and labored breathing.

His stomach lurched and he jolted out of the bed, stumbling and tripping to the bathroom so that he could empty the contents of his heaving stomach, the sting of sake his proof that he drank way more last night than he ever had before in his life. With his arms draped over the porcelain goddess and his head tilted against his forearms, he became painfully aware that he was naked. Bare assed bottomless. That just made last night all the more strange. What the HELL happened between him and Nami that merited NAKEDNESS?

It clicked. _Oh god…_ he groaned. _Please… please… they didn't…_

It was becoming quite plain that something did indeed happen that clearly bordered on sexual. He couldn't for the life of him remember anything.

He got up and managed to drag his ass into the shower, not waiting until it warmed up. How long he was in there, he wasn't sure, but he spent a good deal of time trying to clear the fog from his head and piece together his evening. What did it all mean? He'd be a liar if he said that there wasn't something about his navigator that flipped his switches. But the fact that when his inhibitions were at their weakness, he was capable of going so far as… well, whatever the hell happened last night. He didn't understand. And thinking about it hurt his head.

He stumbled out of the bathroom, feeling still drunk but mostly coherent and as he started to get dressed, a note fell out of his clothing. He picked it up and a flush crept over his face. It was from Nami; further evidence that they'd spent a portion of the night together. She'd gone to get the skiff ready for them.

Sucking back nausea, he pulled himself together into a somewhat civilized human being and headed out of the bar and into the town. He felt like he was walking through fog; people said good morning to them and he was cheerful, but really… out of it.

At the docks, he spotted the Mini Merry and the skiff and headed that way. He stopped dead in his tracks when he got close enough to see into the boats. Nami was lying across the front seat, a cloth over her eyes, her skin a sickly pallid color. And he could tell that this wasn't just "I'm hungover" sick.

"Nami!" he shouted, vaulting over the side of the boat and crouching down next to her, all his haze temporarily pushed aside as a shrill panic for her rose up in him. He pulled the cloth gently from her eyes, "Alright. You tell me now what is going on with you. This is more than just some ass I have to beat. You're acting like this is your last week of life…" he touched her forehead. She was burning with a fever.

* * *

><p>She was more than expecting Luffy's shout, but not the look of pure concern etched into his face as he peeled the towel off her eyes and gazed down at her with panic. Her heart stuttered for a second as she pushed herself up into a seated position.<p>

"Calm down... I'll tell you everything…" she reassured him in a quiet, strained voice. She couldn't hold her head up for long, so she leaned it back against the seat back and slouched low. "We need to leave first... we must hurry... full speed, in that direction," she pulled up a hand and pointed weakly towards the rising sun, just slightly to the left of it.

"Here," she added, and pulled out an eternal pose with the word 'Redgrove' etched into the wood.

As he got the ship started and heading out of the little harbor, Nami closed her eyes and started to explain.

"I finished my training early, so I went to map out a few island on the surface that were nearby in order to add them to my collection. When I got there, the townsfolk acted really strange, but I was greeted on shore by this... man…" she paused, and her voice trembled slightly as she said the word, Watcher's dark eyes blazing in her memory.

"He saw me before I got close and then personally waited for me to tie up my ship. He seemed like such a gentleman at first, but I could tell that everyone was afraid of him. He didn't stay long; he was called away to attend to something. I went straight to the inn, to get a room, and as I went upstairs to put my stuff away, a maid met me in the room, and told me not to drink any of the water."

Nami swallowed hard, and she pulled the damp towel out to pull over her face once again.

"I asked why, and they said it was poisoned. I thought they were all crazy, but I avoided the water just in case. But it didn't matter... later that day, I received a personal invitation to the 'mayor's' resident, which turned out to be this man named Watcher, who'd greeted me at the docks. It was only after the meal when I learned he'd poisoned me."

She sighed, going silent for a moment, and decided she couldn't wait any longer. She reached up and pulled the cloth from her face, and reached for the packet in her pocket, drew it out slowly, and popped one of the precious pills into her mouth.

"Turns out it's not really a poison, but a drug that your system needs to receive regularly, or you start going through withdrawal symptoms that eventually lead to death. Essentially... he has shackled me to him. I don't know if there is an antidote, but I assume so... I've heard rumors, from the townspeople, that there is an antidote."

She put the pills away, then leaned back to replace the cool cloth over her face. She was having a little trouble breathing, and her breaths came in short little puffs as she muscled her way through it, and continued her story, perspiration beading over her forehead and on her neck.

"Later, he told me that he'd fallen in love with me and desired to have me as his personal map maker and navigator… I told him he was nuts, and booked it. I wasn't sure what to do about the drugs now in my system, but I figured if the water was drugged, I'd be fine so long as I didn't leave the island. I ran to a small cottage outside of town, and was taken in by this gentleman and his two daughters. They filled me in about how Watcher has gotten quite a territory, a total of five islands, that he controls using this drug... He's popped up only recently, and is filthy rich, so he's been bribing the marines… not that anyone is brave enough to go against him. He maroons them on an island without the drug until they die. Or steals their shadow…"

She paused, her fingers curling into fists.

"He has these islands because he runs a brothel industry that the wealthiest of patrons in all of the grand line enjoys… and he specializes in young girls. Those two daughters of that man that took me in... Watcher has them, and has threatened to introduce them to the brothel industry if I don't get him the Chalice... but, if I return with the chalice, he'll let me and them go..."

She remembered the day he came for the girls. How could she not when it haunted her dreams most nights?

_He burst through the door, the devil himself and Nami jumped up from the table where she was playing cards with Moira and Lori. Their father was in the village, gathering food for dinner._

"_Watcher…" she growled._

_He smirked, that oily, startlingly handsome smirk, "Did you think to escape me, my sweet? I gave you a fair offer and yet, instead of an answer, you run away."_

_She hustled the girls behind her, her eyes skittering around the small cottage. Where the hell did she put her Clima-Tact? "I said no, Watcher." She would not put herself in another hostage situation. Never again. _

"_No? I offer you gold and riches and the antidote to the poison in your blood veins in exchange for you to become my navigator… and my wife. You will turn that down? Without the antidote, you will never leave the island."_

_She spat in his direction. Where the HELL was her weapon? "No."_

_He sighed, as if she had caused him a great deal of suffering, "I didn't want to have to force your hand, Nami-chan, but you leave me little choice," he glanced over his shoulder and nodded his head. Nami's eyes widened, fear chilling her insides as two of Watcher's biggest and scariest body guards wriggled through the door, "I will make you an offer you can't refuse."_

_The men came right in towards her and she backed the girls right up against the wall. She recognized these men; they were the ones that came to the villages and whisked the children away to the brothels, "No, no, you leave them alone!"_

_She was jerked to the side suddenly and she knew, without even looking, that Watcher had just dragged her shadow away from the girls. Moira, the oldest at eleven, backed away, her arms spread out, protecting Lori._

_Shadow arms wrapped around Nami just as Moira said, "You leave us alone, you meanies!"_

"_Here's my deal, Nami-chan," Watcher appeared next to her, "There is a treasure I desperately seek to increase my business. Surely you've heard of it; the Chalice of Youth. I will set you free from my island to find this Chalice for me. Bring it back and I will keep the girls out of the brothels and I will set you free from my island. Fail to bring that to me and you must stay, as my wife and navigator, to ensure the girls' freedom. Or of course, refuse me again and never leave my island…" he leaned in close to her to whisper, "And I will make sure that those girls get my best clients." She didn't miss the emphasis on the word 'best'. _

_She swallowed hard, anger and black rage setting fires in her eyes. She watched as the two men manhandled her little girls, kicking and screaming and panic flooded her system, making her tremble. If she accepted this deal, instead of finding the Chalice, she could bring Luffy and the gang here and kick the ever living shit out of this creep. They'd handled the Shadow Shadow Fruit before; they'd do it again._

"_So if I bring you the Chalice of Youth, you'll let me and the girls go, right?" she growled, twisting her body a little in effort to loosen the bounds of the shadow._

"_I never break a promise, my sweet," he twirled a piece of her hair and she backed her head away in disgust._

"_Fine," she muttered, "You have a deal."_

"_Excellent," he released her from the shadows, "Oh, and Nami, my dearest. Should you run crying to your crewmates, if you bring the Strawhats here, know that I will kill every – single – villager on this island. I will suck out their shadows and leave them to burn in the morning sun. Capisce?" he tapped her cheek, "Your expression is delightful. Didn't think I would guess your little plan?"_

_He waved his hand and the burly men followed him, hauling Moira and Lori with him._

"_WAIT!" Nami screamed, "Where are you taking them? You said…"_

"_Collateral, Nami," Watcher smiled, "I wouldn't want you to try to smuggle them away before our bargain is complete."_

_With that, he slammed the cottage door behind him, leaving Nami to collapse to the wooden floor, tears springing unbidden to her eyes._

She intended to trade herself for the girls, as soon as she could... if she was still alive, that is. But she left that part out of her story. Nami could already feel the pill working, and slowly her fingers stopped shaking and her stomach began to uncramp. The fever, though, persisted. She had a bad feeling she'd already pushed her body to the limit, and it was starting to suffer. She drew in a breath, slowly, and tried to focus, but her world was dizzy, unstable.

"I lost a lot of pills, Luffy…" she murmured, at last. The tone of her voice was quiet... resigned. "I might not make it back... I'm letting you know we need to get there as soon as possible... and I'm not going to be much help... I'm going to have to stretch these pills, and I'll get sicker each time…" she trailed off, and decided not to finish that sentence.

* * *

><p>AN:

:D

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	18. Chapter 18

~Chapter Eighteen~

With each word she spoke, he started to pull the pieces together. It all made so much sense now. He didn't speak, let her get out her horror story as he steered the ship as fast as humanly possible, catching a great tailwind to push them along the current.

So… this Watcher guy operated a chain of islands for his thriving brothel business. A franchise of adolescent whore houses. Sounded dirty and creepy and horrible. And in order to keep the region under wraps, he poisoned the very water they needed. Water to drink, to bathe, to grow food… He didn't need the Shadow Shadow Fruit, but it was a perk to keep the Marines from bothering him too much.

And he had a strange obsession with Nami. Everyone wanted Nami. She was beautiful and smart and a skilled navigator and cartographer. That infuriated him more than anything; someone was always trying to steal HIS navigator, but not even just that, they tried to capture her and trap her spirit and free will. Arlong… Shiki… Watcher… either by holding something over her head, threatening her nakama or setting her up with an addicting poison that kills the user slowly…

Her secretive attitude, the medication, the obsession over the Chalice, the desperation, the "to hell with it" outlook. She thought her life had an expiration date.

Not on his watch. He glanced back at her when her voice trailed off. She looked a touch better – she must've taken a pill when his back was turned – but she still had that weak, feverish look about her. And this was only going to get worse… he couldn't imagine it any worse, short of her six feet under.

He hopped over to her, containing his temper simmering below the surface because she looked like she'd crack apart under any stress. He sat down next to her and took the cloth from her face to meet her dark-rimmed eyes, "You'll be okay," he told her seriously, "All I've gotta do is beat the snot outta this guy and get you an antidote. Just… don't die on me," he reached down and poured some cool water on her head cloth and laid it back on her head silently. He had nothing else to say to her, confused a little by the intense emotion he felt over the threat on her life and the mysterious night last night….

* * *

><p>Days passed. And every hour that went by, he grew more and more anxious, to the point where he didn't sleep anymore. His complexion was starting to match hers; pasty with dark circles under his eyes. And his desperate need for vengeance only fueled him, acting as a stimulant that kept him up.<p>

She was getting worse. At first, the panic had been overwhelming and consuming, but after the third day on the ocean when she grabbed his hand and said four unholy words, panic seemed relative.

"There are no more…"

She was out of that magic little medicine that kept her withdrawal symptoms at bay. Every minute felt like a battle to keep her conscious. Her fever skyrocketed, her whole body trembled that her teeth chattered in her sleep. She couldn't eat without throwing it all up after and no amount of cool cloths and water helped take the edge off. All his nerves were on end to the point where he jumped at every sound. He spent more time watching her than watching their heading and it was only sheer luck that they were still heading in the right direction. She'd hallucinate, scream, mumble incoherently. Sometimes he caught short phrases about this bastard Watcher and other names, female names that he assumed to be the two little girls she was so attached to. Once and a while, she'd wake up enough to ask him for water or something and he was there, on top of it even before she asked.

By the morning of day six, he'd come to the knowledge that he didn't even need to get her the antidote right away; if he could get her some water from this island, then her body would get the drug it craved and she'd be okay enough for him to leave her side to go kick some ass. Another part of him wondered if they were even going to be able to get onto the island. Would Watcher be waiting for them at the docks? Would he let Nami have some of the poison water so that she would feel better?

Redgrove Island loomed through the afternoon haze, aptly named for the red trees and coppery sand that lined the beaches. His expression black, he moved around the skiffs and got supplies ready to dock. Nami was unconscious; he accepted it the night before when he tried to rouse her, but she was in deep. Gently, he grabbed her Clima-Tact and strapped the thing together. Then, using the limited amount of medical knowledge he'd acquired over time, he picked her up and used his sash to tie her to his back, wrapping her in every blanket they had on the skiff. He used her constructed weapon as a support for her bottom and something for his hands to hold onto.

Ready to jump shore at first opportunity, he steered the Mini Merry into the harbor and didn't even bother to tie her to the docks when they bumped against them. He jumped out, Nami's weak and trembling form against him, her cheek against his shoulder, her fever burning him right to the skin.

Mid afternoon, the center of town was full and bustling with people. No one really seemed to take notice of two strangers that pulled in, one carrying the other like dead weight on his back. He had no idea where he was going to go first; he needed somewhere secure to lay her down and get some water or something for her. Medical care. A doctor's office.

He was at the end of the market street when someone stopped him. He turned his head to see a young woman, no older than he was, but her expression was bleak. Her light blue eyes flickered from him to Nami and back to him, "Is that… Nami-san?" she whispered, her gaze darting around as she uttered Nami's name.

Luffy gave her a hard stare, "Depends. Who are you?"

"I'm so sorry, forgive me. I am Claryssa. I own one of the local inns. Nami stayed with me for a few days when she first arrived at Redgrove. Are you, by chance, Monkey D. Luffy? I recognized your hat," she gestured to the straw hat tipped back on his head, "Come, quickly. Let's take her inside. She is suffering greatly."

Having little other options, Luffy made the choice to trust this woman and followed her into a back alley that led into the back stock room of a inn, supposedly her inn and up some hidden servant stairs to a little room, "Lay her here," Claryssa said, pointing to the bed, "I'd offer you something to drink, but as you may have been informed…"

"I'm good," Luffy finished her sentence for her, carefully untying Nami from her perch and laying her down on the bed. He had brought some food and water from their skiff for him to have so that he didn't get infected from the poison as well, "Get her something though, water or something that has that poison…"

"Right here…" she came back with a pitcher of the cool water and she poured a small glass, "I can't guarantee that it will heal her, but her body craves the drug and this will take the edge off," she lifted Nami's head and tipped the liquid into her throat, "I must say, I'm impressed that she came back… everyone thought that he'd sent her on a death mission…"

He didn't miss the fact that Claryssa didn't say Watcher's name, "I told her she wasn't allowed to die…" Luffy replied, his expression neutral, maybe a touch hostile. He could feel the buzz in the air; like he was being watched. He stifled the urge to kick his eyes around the room and search the corners and dark spots.

"You may stay here for a little while," Claryssa said, standing, "Be careful. He… he can see everything. He might already know you are here and he said that if the straw hats came…" she didn't finish her sentence, the fear in her eyes apparent. She gave him a small nod, "I must attend the inn. I'll come check on you in a little while." She swept out of the room and he heard her whisk down the stairs.

He turned his attention back to Nami and poured her some more water to give her. He thought that maybe some of the trembling was slowing down, but he couldn't be certain. He'd been living in a state of half-alive for the past four days, panic, anxiety and worry all commonplace for him. He laid a cool cloth on her forehead, brushing her coppery waves off her face.

* * *

><p>AN:

:D

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	19. Chapter 19

~Chapter Nineteen~

It took an hour and multiple forced feedings before her trembling stopped and the fever went down enough to no longer be dangerous. Soon, she stirred, and opened her eyes as she gripped the edge of the bed with weak fingers.

"Luffy...we're here…?" she asked, her voice hoarse as she glanced around the room. They were on an island, and she was alive. She could feel the symptoms, slowly, withdrawing from her system, even if she was still very sick.

"We must be…" she muttered, sagging back against the bed and closing her eyes, breathing deep and slowly. "You shouldn't... think about going up to the mayor's house. You can't beat him... he's eaten the shadow shadow fruit... but it's different… if he touches you, he can own your shadow, attack you from your own shadow, and turn into a shadow to avoid punches along with everything else… you really..,"

She had to stop, gasping for breath a little. Her body was so weakened from the prolonged withdrawals that she was very slow to respond to the drug, even in the amounts she was consuming.

She stirred and elation bloomed in him and he leaned down so that she could see him and he couldn't help it. He grinned at her despite his slightly haggard appearance.

"You're awake!" he remarked with a small chuckle, "That's good. Ya, we're here. Safe and sound, like I promised."

She sat up and looked around before collapsing back onto the bed, still trembling and he gave her another glass of water to drink as she weakly explained exactly the answer to his thoughts earlier.

So, this Watcher ate a Shadow Shadow Fruit? Geez, quick turn over rate for that one. Confirmed that Moriah was dead, at the very least. Besides, playing with the shadow shadow fruit again was going to be easy peasy lemon squeezy this time around. "I'll find him at his house? That's easy. Drink up." He forced her to down some more of the water, "You'll need your strength. Because we are going. Right now." He stripped some of the blankets from her until she was just wrapped in one and lifted her easily, situating her the way he had her earlier, using her Clima-Tact as a seat.

Making sure she drank the water and gave her another for the road, he didn't heed her warning whatsoever and headed out of the inn room and into the back alley where they'd come in an hour ago. The sunset was making the ground glow an eerie blood red, the whole landscape covered in it.

"Tell me where to find this guy," he demanded from her, his voice harsh and serious. He switched into all business mode, the one-track minded Luffy that wasn't about to quit until he was down.

Nami started protesting, but he was like a rock, unmovable. She grit her teeth, and buried her face against his neck as she struggled against tears. She couldn't be responsible for his death... but Luffy was going to be the pirate king. She had to find the strength to have faith in him. After all, that's what the past two years were for, right? To become stronger for each other so that he could become the pirate king… if she faltered in thinking that he couldn't beat up the Shadow Shadow Fruit, then they might as well can the whole Pirate King business.

So, her heart cold with fear, she whispered to him, her lips brushing against his neck, the directions to the mayor's house. People stared as they passed, but she didn't have the energy to lift her head, to care.

It was a fairly long walk, since Watcher's manor was high up on a hill. She had fallen silent by the time they reached the gate and then headed up the drive.

The door was unguarded, and as they pushed their way in, found that it was also unlocked. Once in the enormous foyer, a servant suddenly appeared and frowned at them, looking stern as he marched over. "Sir, ma'am, I'm afraid you must leave. Watcher is not here at the moment and is away on business for the next week. You may return afterwards with any pleas or requests."

The servant sniffled snootily and looked down his nose at Luffy.

Luffy took one look at the servant and blinked. Watcher wasn't here?

He strode into the house, pushing past the guy as casual, "No big deal. I don't need him anyway. See, I'm looking for some antidote to this poison that Watcher's got all over this town. You don't happen to know where I can find some, do you?"

The servant paled, his eyes flickering from Luffy's hard expression to Nami, leaning feverishly over his shoulder, "There is no antidote here. I don't know what you are talking about. You must leave."

Luffy shrugged, "No thanks. I'll take a look around myself then." He hitched Nami up his back a little more and headed further into the house. A servant wasn't going to stand in his way, especially when the opportunity was so perfect, what with head honcho not here. And there was NO fucking way he was waiting a week for the guy to come back.

The place was immaculate, very wealthy. Everything was clean and white-washed and bright with lots of windows. He headed over to the sofa to deposit Nami down so he could search for her antidote when the click of a hammer being cocked back captured his attention. He spun around and saw that the servant guy was holding a gun, pointed straight at Luffy's chest.

"You will leave, now," the servant demanded, but his voice lacked some serious confidence to pull the trigger, "Or I'll shoot you."

Luffy cocked an eyebrow, "Go ahead."

"I mean it! Leave now or I'll shoot!"

Again, Luffy shrugged, "I dare you." His voice completely blasé.

There was a heartbeat of hesitation… then the servant pulled the trigger and the bullet snapped out. Luffy sidestepped it and caught the trajectory in his palm. The elasticity in his body killed the momentum instantly and he dropped the ammunition on the floor, harmless. It rolled away hollowly, the attendant's gaze riveted to it. He swallowed hard, face paled and glanced back at Luffy's now steadily blackening expression. His gaze jumped from Nami, to the straw hat, to Luffy and back to the bullet, "You… are Straw Hat Luffy…"

"And you have royally pissed me off…" Luffy growled. He untied the sash that held Nami to him and set her down on the floor gently, placing her Clima-Tact across her lap. He cracked his knuckles, "If you aren't with me, you're against me and I got shit to do." He grabbed the guy by the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, "Now get the fuck outta my way."

He reeled the trembling servant back and launched him through the glass windows at the end of the house with a "Gum Gum Sayonara." The guy skidded across the manicured lawn and landed hard on his ass before collapsing, eagle spread and dazed, on the grass. Luffy brushed his hands off and heaved a sigh. This was taking a long time…

He snapped his head up as something flashed across his mind. People. More people in the house… the warning was brief, as the sound of feet storming across the upstairs floor were all the indication he needed. Three burly men tromped down the stairs and stopped short when they saw Luffy standing in the middle of the foyer, near a half-dead Nami and the windows in the living room beyond him shattered, the servant seeing stars in broad daylight.

"Hey guys!" Luffy greeted with a smile, "Man, that servant sure was rude. Maybe you guys can help me out. I'm looking for an antidote for the poison Watcher has all over the town. See, my navigator is sick…"

Three guns came up and pointed at his face, halting all forms of diplomacy. Luffy's lips tightened in frustration. You'd think that people'd know by now that bullets were zero percent effective and only a touch annoying now.

"Wait! That's Straw Hat Luffy!" Big Oaf Number 1 noticed, "He's a rubber man! Bullets won't work on him!"

Well, someone did their homework… "Yep, that's right! So let's just talk it out, guys…"

Three guns switched from him to Nami, instantly infuriating him, "Oh… not cool…"

He jumped in front of her as the guns went off, emptying rounds into his gut. He sucked them in and when the smoke cleared, smirked manically, "Have these BACK!" he chuckled, bullets rebounding and ricocheting everywhere. He protected Nami from any stray ones and let the ammunition do its job.

It didn't take him long to make quick work of these guys. He decided that Watcher was clearly not a very good bad guy if his staff couldn't hold their ground when he was gone away on business. Then again… Luffy was very, very angry by this point…

The house was in shambles. Pieces of ceiling fell to the floor, dust floated through the air. Blood and snot and tears sprinkled the ground. He nudged his foot against one of the men, checking for consciousness and when the guy moaned feebly, Luffy picked him up by the front of his shirt, "Antidote," he growled, "Where?"

"Watcher… will find you… Straw Hat…" the guy whispered, spitting blood.

"I want the antidote. Where. Is. It." He flicked the guy's broken nose, causing him to yelp in pain.

"I won't tell you…"

Luffy made a face, "You're in no position to keep secrets," he posed his finger over the guy's swelled nose again and the dude yelped like a girl.

"Okay! Okay! Easy, bro! Boss keeps all his important shit in the office upstairs!"

"Upstairs, got it. Thanks." He slammed his fist into the guy's temple, knocking him out cold.

"Nami. Hang tight. I'll be right back." He told her before lopping up the stairs. The office was at the end of the hall and he searched it top to bottom, ripping open drawers, pulling books out of the case, rifling through files. He pocketed anything cool he found, thinking that she'd be happy to come out of this hellhole with something monetary and it was as he was yanking another book from the shelf that a compartment slid open, revealing a safe.

"So sick…" he gasped, eyes bright. He so wanted a secret safe… oh wait, he might have one already. He'd have to ask Franky.

The safe proved to be tricky and he ended up growing so frustrated with it that he ripped it out of the wall and forced it open by punching it repeatedly. Knuckles thoroughly bruised, he tossed the scrap of steel away and discovered a small suitcase, no bigger than a file folder. He clicked it open and grinned wide. A boatload of money… and a zipper plastic bag of half a dozen little blue pills, each individually packaged.

Success! He snatched a pill out, closed the suitcase and after moment, decided to take it with him. Nami loved money. Hell, he fill her a bath full of money and treasure if she'd just get healthy again…

"Hey! Wifey!" he hollered, sliding down the banister to the first floor and jumping over to her, a smile spread across his face, "Lookit what I found!" he showed her the little pill and then opened the suitcase to show her the money, "So, here! Take this and then let's get outta here!" he gave her the antidote pill to swallow and situated her on his back once again.

* * *

><p>AN:

Omg! Where have I been? Computer troubles is where I've been. All I can say is that I'm thankful that I backed up this whole story (it's ALL written already) so I didn't lose the whole thing. My laptop has no screen, I had to plug it into an external monitor and now Windows is starting that whole "randomly shutting down" crap. And, of course, won't let you post docs from an iPad… hmmm…

Here is another chapter! SO SORRY for the wait. Please forgive me.

Cheers! ~Jesachi

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	20. Chapter 20

~Chapter Twenty~

Nami was weaving in and out of consciousness. She tried to pull herself together, particularly when Luffy arrived at the manor, but as they were greeted by the servant and told that Watcher was not here, she was so relieved that she momentarily lost consciousness again.

The next thing she knew, Luffy was standing over her and bullets were flying. It was probably the sound of the guns which woke her in the first place. She tried to sit up, but when her vision wavered, she fell back in a slump, and drifted out of consciousness, dimly aware of feeling perfectly safe with Luffy.

"Wifey!" she jolted back into reality what seemed like seconds later and suddenly Luffy's face was filling her wavering vision, holding up a pill in one hand and a briefcase in the other. He was talking so fast, she couldn't really follow, but she got the gist of what he was saying.

"Luffy… wait… what…" she started, but he grabbed her hand and laid the little pill in the center of her palm and she didn't understand what he said before he laughed.

She glanced down at her hand, her heart in her stomach and her fingers shaking madly. He'd done it... he'd gotten her an antidote... she didn't even know if they existed, but here it was. At least, she hoped that's what this was.

She had nothing to lose, so she popped it into her mouth as her eyes shifted down to the money. Testament to how she felt, she couldn't even muster the greedy happiness at the piles of beris in the suitcase. She would thank him for it later, she supposed.

Luffy hoisted her back up on his back, and the motion made her extremely dizzy. Her head fell against his shoulder weakly. Though she now had the antidote in her system, her body had taken quite the beating. It was worn out and strained from the continual appearance of draining withdrawal symptoms. She tried to stay awake to tell Luffy that they couldn't leave. She had to stay, to trade herself for the girls' lives. She didn't bring the Chalice. Watcher would kill them, but if she could just stay… he could kill her instead… but she was barely clinging to consciousness as it was.

"Lu… ffy…" she whispered against his neck, "Moi…ra… Lo…ri…"

* * *

><p>She was out cold for a few days after their ordeal at Redgrove. He didn't resupply the ship; for obvious reasons, but thought it through and if he was realllllly good, they'd have enough rations to get them back to the meeting point with the rest of the crew.<p>

Man, it was hard though. After the physical stress of worrying over Nami for days before their arrival at Redgrove, his improved mood made him want to eat everything and anything. He resisted the temptation by sleeping it off mostly.

He wasn't sure how they were going to get back to the crew really, but he was just going by the log pose and hoped that luck would hold out for him. With Nami still slipping in and out, he couldn't have her navigate them. But he figured that once she was well enough, she'd want to take over. He was significantly more cheerful now; she was getting better and better, he could tell. Most of her normal color was coming back and her breathing was calm and steady. Her fever was subdued too and going into the fourth day of unconsciousness, she started to roll around a little in her sleep.

But the time alone gave him some serious time to think. He was going to have to come back to Redgrove sooner or later and kick Watcher's ass before he could haunt her anymore. He'd already decided that Chopper would be in charge of making an antidote in a liquid form so they could kill the poison in the water and free the islands. And he was going to save all those kids from their horrid existence in the brothels…

Nami tossed a little and his eyes were drawn to her for the millionth time that day. Having been previously preoccupied, he hadn't given a lot of thought to what the hell happened that drunken night. His memory was a little better than it had been the day after and he remembered things that made his heart race and his face flush. He remembered how good she felt against him, her hot mouth and the way she said his name. He knew that she had sucked him until she blew his mind from here to the end of the Grand Line and after that… it was black.

It bothered him more than he cared to think about. He thought that he had intentions to do the same thing to her… but the fact that he didn't remember if he did or not ate away at the inside of his stomach. What he did remember… he didn't regret a second of it. She rocked his world and a part of him was bent on doing it again. He liked Nami… he liked her more than he should for being just her captain. And damn it, he wanted to remember anything they shared.

She stirred again and he crossed over to the skiff to give her some water, lifting her head up and feeding her. Man, she was going to starving when she woke up…

* * *

><p>Cool water slid down her throat, and she was being moved, just slightly. These things roused her from her sleep, finally, after four days of recovering. She closed her mouth and lifted a weak hand to grab his wrist, stopping him from feeding her any more.<p>

She blinked open her eyes, winced against the harsh light of the sun, then finally adjusted enough to push herself up into a half-sitting position, leaning heavily against the edge of the boat as she got her bearings.

She felt... sluggish. Very sluggish, and sore. She was sore from not moving, she supposed. Her joints were stiff and her stomach hurt with a vengeance. But it was a different kind of hurt than the kind she'd been wrestling with lately. It was an "I'm-empty-please-feed-me" hurt.

As if sensing she was awake, her stomach took that moment to growl and gurgle unhappily.

Nami let her head fall back against the edge of the boat and lifted her eyes up to Luffy. She was still tired, which attested to how close she came to dying from those pills, even after four days of sleeping. "Luffy…" she murmured his name, and a soft smile tugged at the corners of her lips and her eyes shone softly with emotion. He'd saved her life, again... He always would, she felt.

"Thank you... Where... are we…?" Nami's voice trailed off as she sat up a little more and realized they were in a boat. A boat that was not near an island... not near Redgrove.

* * *

><p>She came awake, groggy and sluggish, but he met her alertness with a grin. She looked awesome, in comparison and it made his heart skip a beat to see her smile back at him despite the exhaustion on her face. It was his job to keep her smiling.<p>

"We're on our way back to the crew," he supplied for her, automatically reaching for her when she tried to stand and utterly failed, collapsing to the bottom of the boat again, "I've already decided that we're going to gather the crew and head back to Redgrove later and beat up Watcher. I wasn't gonna wait a week for him to return."

He moved over to their food bag and pulled out a few things for her to eat, some fruit and bread and water. He peeled the fruit for her unconsciously, his fingers quick and nimble, "Here, eat something," he handed it over to her, "You've been out for four days now. You've gotta be starving."

He reached into the bag and grabbed something for him to eat too, feeling suddenly ravished, "I beat up some of Watcher's henchman and got you the antidote. You already look better," he commented, giving her a glance over, "I tore up his house pretty good. He's gonna be right pissed when he gets back," he chuckled, "I'll have to kick his ass quick before he comes after us."

He didn't miss the fact that she seemed borderline panicked about this whole thing. Really though, there wasn't anything to be upset over. He told her he'd take care of it and he planned to. Once they got the crew back together, it could be a whole affair of whoop-ass. Like… a crusade. Ya. He stuffed some bread in his mouth.

* * *

><p>Nami stared at Luffy in rising anger and panic. She took the bread and fruit from him, and yet despite her hunger, she suddenly couldn't eat. The girls… the girls! What was going to happen to them? Nothing was working out to her plan! Her breath came a little faster as her heart raced and her adrenaline spiked, clearing her post-fever fog. Luffy had taken her away from the island before she could work her plan. Watcher was going to know she came back with the Straw Hats – at least the captain – and destroyed the house and stole the antidote! He was going to toss those poor little babies in the brothels and strip the villagers of their shadows!<p>

And Luffy… he was so damned blasé about the situation that she just wanted to throttle him. She told him, hadn't she, about the risks the whole town was in because of her? The girls?

"Luffy, we have to go back," she said, so suddenly that he actually stopped eating and looked at her like she had four heads.

"Umm… no," he said, "We get the crew, then we'll go back – "

"But what about the girls! Luffy! We have to GO!" her voice was pitchy and she frankly didn't care.

His brows furrowed. Luffy was too easy-going to match her temper all the time, but even in her rising panic, she could sense that this was one of those times that he was about to pull the captain card on her and it was going to make her angrier, "My nakama come first. I take care of them before I take care of anyone else."

"I don't care!"

"I do!" the sternness of his voice stopped her for a moment, "You are sick! Watcher wasn't there. I'm taking you to Chopper then I'll deal with the situation at Redgrove."

"It'll be too late by then!"

The look he gave her was one that was reserved for when he was truly irritated with her, which was rare. Nami could count on one hand the times that she had pushed him to that limit, including this moment right here, "I said I'll take care of it," he growled.

She puckered her lips and then decided that as pissed off as she was, she was really too tired to get into it with him. She still felt sick and hungry, yet sick for an entirely different reason now. Sick that she was going to have to live with herself while the girls were about to suffer a fate worse than hell because of her.

She slumped back against the edge of the boat, closed her eyes tightly, and let out a deep breath, sucked in another one, and finally lifted a piece of fruit to nibble on. "Don't say anything, captain," she muttered his name with attitude. "If I fight with you anymore... I'm going to pass out. Also, if you left our crew where I think you did, change the direction of our boats slightly to the left, 2 degrees."

With that, she promptly rolled onto her side to put her back to him, and started gnawing on her bread.

* * *

><p>AN:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	21. Chapter 21

~Chapter Twenty-One~

It was another four days until they reached the crew, and through most of it, Nami was steadily silent. She'd pretty much accepted the logic that they'd already gone too far to turn back and truly make a difference, not with the currents and winds pushing them towards the crew rather than Redgrove. She decided to have a little faith in Luffy's judgment that he'd 'take care of it'. She might be furious with his decision, but even she couldn't deny that when it came to things like this, he had a good head about him.

As the days passed, she became aware of another fact that continued to burn her ire. Luffy probably didn't remember the mind-blowing sex they'd had before she'd gotten so sick. He acted like absolutely nothing was different, and that made her even more mad at him. He'd started the whole debacle that night by pinning her to a wall and kissing her. He should take responsibility for that and not ignore it, damn it! So while she didn't exactly put it past him to literally ignore it, she had a better feeling that he was unable to remember it, as often happened when her captain imbibed.

But that was no excuse! It MEANT something to Nami. Damn it again, though because she probably never gonna be able to tell him that.

She sighed and leaned her head back against the edge of the skiff, feeling irritable. In the distance, a wave shifted, crested, and broke, and suddenly she could see the distant outline of an island. Elated, she sat up, grabbed her telescope, and brought it to her eye. It was still a little far, but she could see a ship moored at the shore. The Lion's Head was hard to miss. The Sunny-Go.

"Luffy, the crew!" she pointed, the first real and honest words she'd said to him in days, a genuine smile on her face, easing the lines of stress that had been present for weeks now.

The crew... was her haven. They were her family, her everything... And since she set out for the Chalice, she thought she was never going to see them again.

* * *

><p>He'd taken her silent treatment in stride, letting her have her time to stew. She was still recovering from her near-death experience so he figured it was good for her to have some down time. Of course, after four days of not talking to her, to SOMEONE, he was ready to explode.<p>

It wasn't for lack of trying to engage her too. He'd made some serious efforts to talk to her about something but she just brushed him off with some snappy, short remark that left chills over his skin it was so icy. She was seriously pissed off at him and he could understand it to a point, but geez… after over 72 hours of it, he was done.

So when she sat up and shouted that the crew was on that island up ahead, he was pumped. The crew… someone to talk to, real food and a doctor to help Nami recover. Because it was getting tense between them.

They pulled into the surf and he jumped out once the water was below his knees and dragged the boat in. On the sand, the scene was so normal that it filled him with elation. Tikka, Robin and Franky were sunbathing and Zoro was sleeping in a hammock strung up in the shade. Sanji was cooking something delicious over an open fire and Usopp was entertaining Chopper with a new invention. Brook still wasn't back yet, but it was still absolute perfection.

"Hey guys!" he hollered and everyone's heads snapped up. He grinned wide and laughed as they all waved back to him and shouted greetings. He turned and helped Nami out of the skiff, lifting her easily by her waist and setting her carefully in the sand. He kept one hand latched to her arm below her shoulder, in case she decided to fall over or something. This was the first time she was actually standing.

"Hey, Luffy," Zoro called, his eyes sleepy still, "Oh look, you found Nami…" he yawned.

"You're a week and a half late," Sanji scolded, working his spatula, a cigarette dangling from his lips, "We've been waiting a long time for you."

"Sorry!" Luffy rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish grin, "Got wrapped up in a crazy adventure… what are you cooking? I'm starving…"

"Figures. Some meat, just for you, you monster." Sanji flipped something over the grill then turned to Nami and made a perfect pirouette over to her, "Nami-SWANNNN!" he exclaimed before dropping to his knees in front of her and grabbing her hands, "I've missed you like the moon misses the stars!" he kissed her knuckles.

She laughed and smiled and said hello to him. Luffy chuckled and rolled his eyes and he peeled her away from his cook before the guy started to bleed from the nose and over to Chopper. Sanji legit skipped away, exclaiming about making her a revitalizing drink or some shit.

"Hey, Chopper! Got a second?" Luffy asked, "I want you to look over Nami. She got real sick over our adventure."

"I'm fine now, Luffy," she mumbled to him. He promptly ignored her.

Chopper glanced at them both and then nodded, "Sure, I can take a look. How are you feeling now, Nami? What were your symptoms?" he switched into his Heavy Point to guide her away from the crew to the shade under a tree for a little more privacy. Nami glanced over her shoulder at Luffy with a furrowed brow that looked like she might want to clobber him in the near future before her and the doctor started talking really low to each other.

Satisfied, Luffy turned away and headed for Zoro.

* * *

><p>Nami was grateful when Luffy helped her out of the boat, even though she was trying to be mad at him. This was made even harder when he demanded that Chopper take care of her. It was such a protective, heart-warming gesture that her stern features faltered for a moment.<p>

Chopper took her arm and pulled her away from Luffy. She glanced back at him, irked because really, she felt fine, but then he smiled at her and she looked away quickly. Time away from the captain would be good for her health, she thought.

So she followed Chopper into the shade, where he quickly brought over his medicine bag and began giving her a check-up. His expression turned grim from his results, especially after he wrestled the story about the pills out of her.

"That's really dangerous, Nami... to think you could extend your death by going through withdrawals purposefully puts a lot of strain on your body. You almost died! Without that antidote, you would have. Even more of that drug, at this point, would not have saved you." Chopper lectured her, and Nami took it in silence. She understood, but she had had no choice.

And she was alive, thanks to Luffy.

Her eyes flickered over to the captain, then quickly away. She wasn't ready to forgive him yet... especially since there was this awkward tension about that night…

Sighing, she leaned back and let Chopper do his work.

* * *

><p>Tikka sat up when a commotion roused her. She was delighted to see that Luffy and Nami were back, and eagerly greeted her along with everyone else. Then she noticed something. Because, hey, living with a gay guy made you particularly good at finding and identifying drama.<p>

There was an unusual tension between them.

Tension in and of itself was not cause for alarm. In fact, as long as Tikka had known Nami, she knew something was off about the woman. She was convinced she had yet to see the true Nami. But there was something very different about this terseness. It was less about Nami as a person and more about… Luffy too. The captain was involved somehow. They seemed too aware of each other yet at the same time extremely distant for two people who just spent two weeks away from the crew.

Tikka's eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward to prop her elbows on her knees, watching closely.

"Ow! Tikka baby, I see that look in your eyes….what mischief are you plotting?" Franky asked with a puzzled tone to his voice. Robin lounged in her chair next to him, her nose in a history novel and a smile curled her lips. She said nothing, however.

Tikka laughed, glanced from Robin to Franky, and rolled her eyes. "Franky, you're seeing things. I'm nothing but sunshine and innocence," she gave him a glowing smile that actually brought something of a quick laugh out of Robin, "Besides, you wouldn't know true mischief if it hit you in the face with a brick." She giggled, "Robin sees what I see."

The scholarly woman pursed her lips together, her eyes never leaving her page, "I'm just reading my book," she pointed out, too innocently in Tikka's opinion. Nothing slipped by that woman.

Tikka laughed as Franky snorted and rolled over onto his front, muttering about crazy swords women and their secret woman talk. She just shook her head, gave Robin a wry look to which the woman glanced at her sidelong and shrugged minutely, and turned back to staring at Nami.

Nami continued talking to Chopper and mid-sentence, Tikka watched as the navigator's eyes sought out Luffy, who was waking up Zoro. The swordswoman glanced at Luffy, who glanced up and caught Nami looking at him. He smiled, she turned her face away from him with a huff, but Tikka didn't miss it. That woman was blushing. Totally and shamelessly blushing. Luffy's response? A shrug and starting talking to Zoro again. But Tikka had seen enough to form a hypothesis, as unbelievable in her head as it was about to be when it came out of her mouth.

Cackling, she shot out of her lounge chair and headed over to Nami for a chat.

* * *

><p>Nami had managed to finally shoo Chopper away, saying she wanted to rest. He grumbled and agreed, saying he wanted to debrief with Luffy anyway. No sooner had she spread out a towel and waved at Sanji to bring her a stiff drink than she suddenly had company again.<p>

"Hey Nami, I've missed you," Tikka said with a grin as she plopped herself down in front of the redhead.

Nami blinked, and couldn't help but grin back at the white-haired young woman. In the short time they'd been nakama, Nami had come to adore her. "Tikka, how are things?"

"Great! Bagged me a Zoro, and my daddy approves! Ain't that great?" Tikka winked, glanced over at Zoro, and licked her lips in a way that had Nami rolling with laughter at the swordsman's flaming face as he paused mid-conversation with Luffy.

"That's... well, good for you!" Nami supplied, smiling and shaking her head. She'd been so wrapped up in her own head that she'd almost forgotten that Zoro and Tikka had had a strange and turbulent romance before she'd left.

"It is... it's fucking fantastic," Tikka grinned and Nami didn't miss the way that innocent smile slowly sank into something devilish. The white-haired woman scooted closer to her, "I can't help but notice that you seem a little… tense, for someone who just got back from a glorious vacation with our sexy captain."

Nami's jaw dropped and she floundered for a minute, unsure of how to respond, "Luffy's not… It wasn't…" she didn't know what to say first; to blatantly deny Luffy's sexuality or that she wasn't on a vacation or both, "It was a very stressful trip. I'm thankful to be back with the crew."

Tikka dropped her chin into her hand, "Tell me about it."

So, hesitantly and very careful to leave out anything that had to do with the captain and the kissing or the sex or whatever, Nami recapped the Reader's Digest version of her adventure. Tikka was attentive and the perfect audience member, nodding and gasping and shouting angrily in all the right places and for some reason, that felt very suspicious to Nami.

"Wow…" Tikka gasped softly at the end, "That sounds incredible…"

"It was," Nami agreed.

"One thing though that's not clear to me," Tikka started, "I'm confused on the timeline a little. Did you fuck the captain before you got to the island or after you felt better?" Tikka whispered that last bit covertly, and Nami's jaw practically hit the ground as she gaped in horror at Tikka, who burst into laughter and crowded closer to the navigator and dropped her voice.

"Relax, Nami, I'm a gifted woman... Loo taught me well in the art of paying attention to potential gossip, but I won't tell. Besides, I can see you need rest. Just take my advice... don't dwell, on whatever it is you are dwelling on... the reward can be soooo good." And with that, Tikka winked, got to her feet, and strutted back over to her lawn chair with a certain sass and sway to her hip that drew Zoro's eye as she purposefully eased herself slowly and sensuously onto the lawn chair.

"Ow! Tikka! You're basically begging for a super spanking!" Franky half growled, half laughed at her before he promptly turned his head towards Robin instead, and closed his eyes. Tikka ignored him with a smirk and settled her sunglasses on her eyes once more.

* * *

><p>AN:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	22. Chapter 22

~Chapter Twenty-Two~

Nami was recovering swimmingly for the next two days, making it a grand total of over a week that she hadn't spoken to Luffy. Chopper was making sure that she was getting proper medicinal care and Sanji was going out of his way to make her nutritious meals. But… it was becoming blatantly obvious to the rest of the nakama that the captain and the navigator weren't on speaking terms. Aside from Tikka and Chopper, no one really knew what had happened on their little 'adventure'. Nami had started to navigate them in the direction of Redgrove and because Luffy hadn't protested the heading, Franky had made it happen. Everyone was still very much in the dark though.

Zoro was dusting his swords on the deck when movement caught his eye. Tikka sauntered up to him in that sinful red bikini in a way that clearly bespoke to him that she wanted something out of him. And not the sexual something. She had that wicked, secretive air about her that was conniving and devious.

"Zoro…" she drawled his name and he gave her a cursory glance. His blood pressure shot through the roof when she sat on his lap, effectively straddling him, her hands on his shoulders. Thankfully, no one was on this part of the deck, "I have a problem…"

"I have a bad feeling about this…" he hedged, placing his weapons to the side and settling his hands on her hips, fingering the ties on the bottom, "What are you plotting?"

She smirked, her lips curling slowly, "I have some gossip that I can't hold onto anymore…"

Ah. Gossip, "Not interested, Tikka."

"Luffy and Nami fucked."

Well. That certainly got his attention, "No they didn't," he nearly laughed, "Luffy and Nami? You're kidding." The idea of Luffy even knowing anything about sex and women was so farfetched it bordered on mystical, "You're seeing things."

She leveled him a glare, "Zoro, love, I grew up with a flamingly gay man with a keen eye for these things. Besides the fact that she all but told me herself that her and Luffy fucked…"

"Stop using that word…"

"…. Fucked…" she drawled intentionally, "The signs are clearly there. She refers to him as the 'captain' and every time he enters the same space as her, she runs for the hills. I've caught them glancing at each other. There were definitely sexual relations between them."

"Why are you telling me this?" he asked skeptically. Not only was it really none of his business about what Luffy and Nami did on their own time, but now all Tikka had done for the past five minutes is talk about sex and he was getting flustered just thinking about it. It had to be the bathing suit… she was goading him on purpose…

"I think you should have a heart to heart with our captain…" she traced her fingers along the collar of his shirt innocently, before flickering those big, bright golden eyes up to his.

"No way. Not doing. I'm not having the sex talk with Luffy."

She heaved a great sigh like this is was such a hardship for her, "Oh… well, in that case, I did promise Sanji a while ago that I would sleep in his hammock one night…" she tapped his cheek, "I guess you're on your own tonight, Zoro…"

"Damn you, woman," he growled, gripping her hips tighter when she attempted to get up, "You are a devil."

She shrugged and trailed her hand down his chest, "Does that mean you'll do it?" damn it, he was so aware of her right now…

"I didn't say that. What are you gonna do for me?" he plucked a tie on her bikini, hard enough to loosen it, but not enough to undo it.

She rubbed her body against him like a cat and leaned in to whisper in his ear the beginnings of a steamy night and he was sold. He knew that she did this whole thing to get a rise out of him and manipulate him into getting what she wanted. He wasn't the least bit upset over it; in fact, he was giving her kudos on the inside that she knew exactly how to get under his skin. God help him, she'd make a fierce enemy.

"Fine, I'll talk to Luffy."

She smiled, her face lighting up and changing dramatically from seductress to happy woman, "You're the best!" she kissed him quick and he let her stand up this time.

"Don't forget it," he reminded her in a growl, picking up his swords to resume his earlier task. She waved a hand at him and plucked her towel off the ship wall and all but skipped over to her chair, humming merrily. He rolled his eyes at her and shook his head.

* * *

><p>So. He officially had no idea what was going on with Nami anymore.<p>

Luffy was sprawled on the deck, arms tucked behind his head, staring up at the white clouds drifting through the sky, but his mind was elsewhere. Nami still wasn't talking to him. He thought that maybe once they were back with the crew and she had some time away from him and away from this whole Redgrove situation that she'd get a clearer head for a plan of action or something. But no. She still refused to speak to him and if she had to communicate with him – which was necessary at times due to both of their statuses on this vessel – she referred to him as "captain" and damn if it didn't grate his nerves.

Was she still upset because he'd left Redgrove in a hurry and didn't stick around to save the girls? He didn't realize she held such a grudge over it. He accepted it as circumstantial at this point; Nami's health had been more important so clearly, that was the right decision. He felt bad, sure, but he didn't see any point dwelling on what should have happened when now that they were back with the crew, they could be planning some what's-gonna-happen. In fact, nothing really had been mentioned about their whole affair to Redgrove and the situation over there.

The stagnant action was making his twitchy.

A shadow loomed over him and Luffy turned his head to see Zoro plop down beside him with a frown and arms crossed over his chest, "Hey," Luffy greeted, "What's up, swordsman?"

"We need to have a conversation." Zoro stated and Luffy rolled over into his stomach, "Believe me, I wouldn't be here if Tikka wasn't behind this."

"Okay…" he was confused now, "So… what's doing?"

"Do you know why Nami isn't talking to you?"

"Nope, not anymore. I thought it was because of the whole Redgrove incident, but I don't think it's that anymore." At Zoro's perked brow, Luffy quickly explained his adventure, from the chalice to the island and about the little girls in the brothels.

"Sounds rough, man," Zoro commented afterwards, to which Luffy nodded in agreement, "So, is that why she's not speaking to you or do you think it's something else?"

"I dunno. I think she's being stubborn now."

"She's a woman, it's part of their job description," Zoro leaned back on his hands, "Alright, Luffy, man, I'm gonna be straight with you. I gotta ask. Did you have sex with Nami?" The silence was all he needed to shoot back up into a sitting position and stare at his captain with a slack jaw, "Are you fucking serious? I thought Tikka was pulling that out of her ass…"

"I don't know!" Luffy exclaimed, a fierce flush staining his face. He sat up and stared at his palms, "We… got really drunk one night and… one thing led to another. I don't remember much…" an uncomfortable tightness washed over him at the idea of taking about this to Zoro.

The swordsman blinked at him, "You had drunk sex with Nami that you don't remember? Luffy… that's why she's mad at you! She probably remembers it! She probably thinks you're being an insensitive ass because you haven't said anything to her about it, am I right?"

Luffy shook his head rapidly, his mouth tight, his face red.

"Look," Luffy flipped his eyes up to see Zoro glancing out over the ocean, his own red stain dusting his cheeks, "You need to ask Nami to clear this up for you, ask her what happened and figure out what you're going to do about it," he shook his head and a smirk crept onto his face, "I can't believe this shit. You did the nasty with Nami. I'm blown away that you even know anything about it…"

Luffy shrugged, "Shanks and his crew talked a lot… wait, wouldn't that be worse, asking her about it? I'd rather it just fizzle out or something…" that would spare him that complete shame of admitting that he didn't remember whatever mind-blowing sexcapde they had.

Zoro leveled him a look, "Luffy, you have sex with a woman and you commit to her."

"I dunno if we had sex…"

"Do you think you had sex?"

"… Ya…"

"Then it's your problem now." Zoro sighed, "Just ask her what happened and clear the air with her. You'll feel better after."

"What am I supposed to do if she tells me we did do it?" Luffy pondered.

Zoro stood up and brushed off his knees, "You guys have to decide that. The question is, do you regret it?"

"I don't regret anything."

The swordsman smiled, "That's a start." He walked away, waving a hand over his shoulder, "Good talk, Luffy."

"Ya… good talk…" the captain muttered thoughtfully. He stared at the deck for another minute before snapping his head up to glance at the door that led to the library/Nami's cartographer room. She was in there, he knew because she'd hole herself up in there for hours since they got back. Zoro made so much sense. He should go talk to her. If he could catch her in her map room, then she wouldn't have a chance to escape him.

Deciding that his courage would only fail him if he waited any longer, he shot up to his feet and Gum Gummed up to the room. He opened the door slowly to find her sitting at the desk, mapping paper and notes scattered across the surface, an ink well open to the side. He shut the door and leaned against it, arms over his chest, chin down so his eyes were shadowed by his hair.

"Zoro said I need to come and clear the air with you," he started, his voice quiet, face flushed, "Umm, what happened… the night we got really drunk?" god that sounded so awful coming out of his mouth, even worse than it did in his head. He swallowed hard, his body heated with awareness, "Because I need you to fill in the blanks for me…"

* * *

><p>As he walked through the center of town, he knew something was wrong. Typically the townspeople shied away from him; after all, he wielded not only the power to take their children at will but also to wipe away their shadows if they protested; but something was different now. Literally, as he walked by, shop owners closed their doors and barred their windows. Mothers ushered their children behind their skirts and off the streets. He'd been away for a week on business at one of his other islands and this is the kind of reception he returned to? Hardly respectful for his status as mayor. Perhaps he could teach a few of them some manners… the butcher had a lovely little girl who would do well at the local brothel…<p>

Watcher turned off the main street and headed up the drag to where his large and elegant estate stood on a hill overlooking the town. Flanking him were half a dozen of some of his best guards; he'd left a couple at his estate just in case and of course, all the keeps at the brothels stayed for work. He wasn't a man of many means really. He didn't like a lot of hands in the kitchen, to say the least. Things tended to get messy that way.

He unlocked the front door and was immediately greeted by his butler.

"Good afternoon, sir, I trust you had a pleasant trip," the man bowed. The man sported a black eye.

Watcher glared at him, "What happened to you?" he growled, then glanced around. The back windows were new, freshly changed and despite the floor looking clean, he could hear the dull crunch of left over glass under his shoes. The ceiling had been patched, the walls as well, "What the hell happened here?"

The butler bowed and Watcher didn't miss the tremble in the man's voice, "Your wife returned, sir. She brought Straw Hat Luffy with her, sir, the captain of the Straw Hats. I refused them entrance, explained you were not here…"

Watched held up his hand and the man stopped talking. Slowly, he took a few steps into the house, making a mental sweep as his brain processed. His wife, his beautiful, darling wife Nami had returned to him during his absence. She had not stayed, clearly. She had obviously failed in her mission to bring him the Chalice of Youth and she defied his wishes and brought the Straw Hat Captain with her. He took a deep breath to calm his instant and burning fury.

"Were there any others here?" he asked carefully, "Tell me exactly what happened, to your memory. Do not leave out a single detail."

The butler bowed and continued his story, "They showed up, demanding an antidote to the poison you have infected the townspeople with. I denied them entrance and then… then I shot Straw Hat."

"You shot Straw Hat?"

"Yes, sir."

"You shot a man made of rubber that has mastered all three elements of Haki?"

"Y-yes, sir, I did."

"And I imagine he did not take kindly to that."

"N-no, sir. He… he caught the bullet in his bare hands and then… then he tossed me out the back windows," the man gestured to the newly repaired high glass windows.

Watcher nodded, "And then?" he prompted.

"When I woke, the house was empty, the three guards were unconscious and your office had been ransacked. He took your small briefcase that was inside your safe, sir."

"Three guards?" Watcher wondered. Then he raised his voice, "Tango! Rosy!"

Within moments, two people came racing down the stairs and were standing at attention in front of him. One was a huge man and the other a thin, lithe female assassin, "Where were you two the night Straw Hat arrived?"

They both apologized in sync before Rosy spoke up, "We were taking care of an uprising in the town east of here where you have another brothel. The girls were revolting."

"And it took two of you to go over there, a day's journey from here, to shut down two dozen, malnourished and mostly drugged girls under the age of fifteen? My two top guards? Where was the security inside the brothel that prevents these types of things?" he was furious, furious that Straw Hat had been here and had left and not a single person of consequence was here to stop that rubber idiot.

"We are sorry, sir."

"And where, pray tell, are the idiots that Straw Hat overtook when he was here?"

"We saw them disposed, sir," Tango spoke in his deep, behemoth voice.

"I should see you disposed too," Watcher growled and both the guards flinched visibly, "However, good help is so hard to come by…"

With that, he grabbed the butler and immediately stripped the shadow from the man, absorbing it into his own body, "And you, fool, let Straw Hat into this house in the first place. Your insolence is not forgiven." He ignored the man's begging and pleading and opened the front door and tossed the shadow-less butler out into the evening sun. And promptly slammed the door on the man's screaming as he burst into flame.

"Let that serve as an example to you two what will happen if either of you fucks up this big again," Watcher growled threateningly, "Straw Hat came and went on his merry little way with my WIFE and stole the antidote from under our noses. It is your fault my navigator runs free from me now."

"We are sorry, sir," they both bowed their heads.

Watcher took a deep breath, before he stormed up to his office, Tango and Rosy following closely behind. He slammed his lean body into his chair and picked up the Den-Den-Mushi sitting on the desk.

"Yes, sir?" a voice picked up on the other line from the local brothel here in town. He commanded a handful on this island alone and five other islands with a growing business in the pleasure commodity of young girls and boys.

"I want those two little brats thrown into the wolves now. Only the best clients for them," he emphasized the word best in such as way as to mean just the opposite.

"Yes, sir. Will do."

Watcher slammed the transponder snail closed with a violent click and rotated in his chair to stare out the window at the setting sun. She would come back, he was certain. Even without the drug pulsating through her sweet veins, she would come back because she was too compassionate not to. And that was what he was counting on. Her return was imminent.

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Zoro:_ Tikka, you owe me big_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2012_


	23. Chapter 23

~Chapter Twenty Three~

Nami was having a tough debate with herself. She really wanted to talk to Luffy. She was...well, still miffed at him, she supposed, but she'd never gone this long not talking to him while they were on the same ship together. It was...unnatural. It made her skin itch and she was constantly agitated.

She'd changed their course to head towards Redgrove, but with the currents and the winds opposing them, it was going to take them much longer to return than it did to get them there. She still hadn't told much to her nakama, but just the idea of them knowing what she was subjugated to... well, she was reluctant.

She was staring at a map that she was supposed to be finishing when the door suddenly opened, and she lifted her head to find the exact person who seemed to be constantly on her mind. Monkey D. Luffy.

She sat back, trying to look indifferent even if her heart was in her throat and butterflies were filing her belly. No matter how mad she was at him, she couldn't stop reacting to him this way. He was...well, something about him just drew her.

He shut the door behind him and leaned against it and something about the slow, methodical way he did it suggested he was very serious. Luffy was rarely serious.

""Zoro said I need to come and clear the air with you," he said, his voice soft, the shadow of his hat brim concealing his eyes, but not his face. Was he blushing? That had to be the lighting in the room. Monkey D. Luffy, embarrassed? Please, Nami.

"Umm, what happened… the night we got really drunk? Because I need you to fill in the blanks for me…" he finished.

She froze, her eyes wide, her cheeks flaming and her body suddenly tight. So...he really didn't remember. Swallowing hard, she looked away, turning back to her map as her fingers curled into fists on the drafting table. "Luffy... we were... very drunk," she told him, her voice hedging. Her stomach was suddenly in knots; she wanted him to know, and at the same time, she was terrified of how he was going to react.

"We had sex…" she finally blurted. Really amazing sex, but she left that part out, and stared hard at the map, as if she could make it finish itself by how much she glared at it.

* * *

><p>His whole body went rigid when she blurted out those three uncertain words that had been bothering him for days.<p>

"We had sex."

That… cleared things up somewhat. There was no mistaking that. Sex was sex was sex. That also told him something else; she remembered it and it was probably the source of her irritation with him. God, he felt like an insufferable ass.

He shifted his feet, not leaving his post by the door, finding little resolve to step closer to her, feeling like he was already suffocating just being in the windowless map room. What did this mean now? They had sex… a fraction of him was like, so what? But another part of him, a bigger part of him knew that he really liked Nami and it didn't sit well with him that he didn't recall anything beyond whatever she did to him with her hot mouth.

Drunk sex just had a dirty taste in his mouth, making him think of cheap nights and whores and that was so NOT what he wanted whatever this was between him and Nami to be.

"Okay…" he finally hedged. He dared to meet her eyes for a second before they skittered away in shame and embarrassment, "So, my next question. Did I… I mean, was it… good?" he struggled to string the words together, his voice thick, "Because it really bothers me that I don't remember anything after whatever you did to me. For all I know, I could've passed out and you got nothing out of it," he spoke fast, the words tumbling out of his mouth before he had the chance to censor them.

A thought occurred to him that had his heart jumping into his throat. What if… what if she told him that he had utterly failed in rocking her world? What was he going to do then? The crazy in him declared that he'd give it a round two, not drunk, while the other part of him choked at the idea of getting down with her again. It was… scary and thrilling. He couldn't think about it.

As soon as his words were out, she went utterly still. Her face, more than any words, spoke volumes in answer; she flushed a deep red and her eyes, as she glanced towards him, were molten with the memories of that night together swimming in her brain.

* * *

><p>She cleared her throat and glanced up at him, needing to see his face, his expression. He looked... slightly panicked, red faced, that was certain now... but she couldn't decipher what he was thinking, what this topic meant to him.<p>

Blushing deeper, she looked away. "Uh... yeah... it was... really good. You didn't pass out till the end…" Her blush crept lower now to cover her chest and neck as she struggled to say these next words. "Don't worry… I mean, you repaid everything we did in kind."

After that she was silent. She just... didn't know what to say. She knew, though, that this was a very important moment for them. She felt a huge relief come off her shoulders just knowing that he knew, now. But... what now? What would he want from this?

She wanted... more. But she didn't know how to go about that with Luffy. In fact, she lacked the courage to even ask if he wanted more than what they'd shared. She had a bad feeling in her gut that it had been a one-time deal because of how drunk they'd been and how reckless she'd felt.

* * *

><p>A blank sense of shock washed over him and he took a few minutes of their tense silence to sort through what he was thinking. He felt all tingly on the inside and it confused him. He was… there was a certain relief to know that after she blew him sky high that he'd reciprocated or as she said "paid everything back in kind".<p>

He kinda wondered what he did to her…

It didn't matter though; it was done and she said it was good and that was good enough for him for now. He couldn't stand here in front of her and think about the next steps. He felt like they started backwards. Tikka and Zoro had a little romance before they had sex… him and Nami… they just skipped right to the punch line and he wasn't sure how they were supposed to backtrack.

If there was any reason to backtrack or what those thoughts even meant.

"Good to know," he settled on, pushing off the wall. He glanced up at her and his eyes darted down to her mouth and then back up to her eyes before he turned and opened the door, leaving her in the room. He desperately needed the air.

No sooner had he shut the door behind him than he came face to face with Sanji, who was staring at him with a strange expression on his face, a cigarette halfway to his lips and burning steadily, a glass of some drink in his hand. Luffy's gaze darted from the cook, to the drink then back to the cook. He looked like he was in the middle of maybe bringing Nami a beverage.

"Hey…" Luffy started when suddenly, a fist collided with his face and sent his sprawling over the deck. He sat up fast and grabbed his throbbing eye, "What the hell, man?"

Sanji put the drink down on the railing and rubbed his knuckles, his expression melting from shock to livid. Not giving the captain a chance to recover, he grabbed Luffy by the back of his shirt and started dragging him across the ship.

"Hey! Cut it out! Let go of me!" Luffy hollered, drawing the attention of some of the crew on the deck as he struggled to get his footing, his hands clawing at Sanji's grip.

On the top deck, Sanji suddenly switched his grip to the front of the captain's shirt and hauled him up with incredible strength and dangled him over the edge of the ship. Luffy stopped struggling instantly, his hands wrapping around the cook's wrists, his eyes taking stock of the fact that he was twenty feet above a raging ocean.

"Heard something interesting when I was bringing sweet Nami a refreshment…" Sanji growled and Luffy's face turned a mottled mix of flushed and pale, "Something about you being a completely fuckhead and a one night stand."

"It's not your business," Luffy growled, his cheeks red just thinking about what that conversation must've sounded like from the other side of the door, "Are you gonna drop me?"

"Depends… I'm considering whether you deserve to drown or not…"

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Nami: "Good… to… know?"

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	24. Chapter 24

~Chapter Twenty-Four~

"_Where there is desire there is gonna be a flame, where there is a flame someone's bound to get burned. But just because it burns doesn't mean you're gonna die. You've got to get up and try, try, try."~Pink_

Nami felt something cold wrap around her stomach and squeeze tightly when Luffy uttered those words, then turned and left. The click of the door made a hollow sound. She sat there and tried to come to grips with something she'd already been trying to tell herself.

"Good to know."

That...was definitely Luffy, alright. Making sure he did what he did to his fullest... and not worrying about anything else.

It was probably just sex to him, and not even that, because he couldn't even remember!

Pure fury flushed through her system. She'd had a one night stand with her captain, and now things were just supposed to go back to normal? She... she didn't... want that.

Her fingers curled into fists and she slammed them down on the table, ready to get up and let that stupid moron have it. Suddenly, she heard a loud crash outside. Blinking, she stared at the door for a whole minute before she rushed outside, throwing open the door with a vicious slam.

Sanji was just throwing Luffy out over the water, and held him there steadily. Others had gathered to watch with wide eyes, and Nami hurried to the edge of the railing to try and understand what the hell was going on.

"Sanji!" Chopper and Usopp screamed in chorus.

"Nami is a princess, a QUEEN," Sanji growled and shook Luffy violently, who was desperately clutching the cook's wrist. "She is not someone you have a one night stand with. NO LADY deserves that, do you hear me?"

Sanji's face was black with anger, and he was visibly shaking. Nami felt all of the color leave her face as eyes flickered up to her from the deck. Tikka was, naturally, unfazed, and was grinning ear to ear at the situation, which had earned her a glower from Zoro, who stood impassively by. Franky was gaping, albeit with a grin and holding back tears of hilarity, while Robin had turned to look up at Nami, which she was studiously avoiding. Greaaat. Everyone had turned out for the Luffy and Nami Show.

Usopp gasped loudly, his hand flying to cover his mouth and Nami heard Chopper ask him, "What's a 'one-night-stand'?"

Nami covered her face with her hands and turned to head back into her cartography room, practically running. This was too embarrassing to handle. If Luffy didn't want to have anything to do with her in that manner, then it was his business... she would not be okay with her captain being FORCED to like her.

Devastated, she locked the door and went to the little cot she kept in there for when she was working particularly late, and threw herself down on it to bury her face. She was there for maybe three seconds when a wave of nausea rolled over her. Making a face, she rolled onto her side and curled up, trying to ignore the shouting going on outside.

* * *

><p>Sanji yanked Luffy towards him, purposefully knocking Luffy against the side of the boat, and said in a growl, "You treat her with respect, and with care, and you make her happy, or so help me, I'll beat your face in until you can't see anymore."<p>

Sanji was very mad. He was heartbroken, on the inside, that Nami would choose a moron like Luffy over a refined gentleman like himself. He was devastated. But he couldn't cause Nami unhappiness by making a fuss about it. The only thing he could do was make sure she was damn happy.

"A man should be PROUD of being with the woman he loves," Sanji said, somewhat dramatically. "And when you take a woman to bed, you make a promise to her... DON'T make me have to repeat myself, EVER."

With that, Sanji tossed Luffy towards the deck, hard enough that he crashed into it with a thump, but the strong wood held out. "Nami is a beautiful, strong, intelligent, woman... she is a damn princess, and you better treat her as such."

Fuming, Sanji turned on his heel, and marched away, towards the kitchen, his shoulders tight and his expression black. As he past Usopp and Chopper, they hurriedly jumped out of his way, glancing wide-eyed between Luffy and Sanji, and then up to the closed door of Nami's map room.

"Luffy and Nami got it on…" Usopp whispered in sing-song to Chopper as Sanji past, and then immediately regret it when Sanji turned on them with the blackest of glares, and Usopp and Chopper both lifted their hands in immediate surrender, and Sanji simply turned away and disappeared into the galley.

As the door to the galley slammed shut, Franky could no longer contain it and started laughing, "You've got it SUPER bad, Luffy-bro!" then he and Robin disappeared.

Tikka whistled low and glanced from Luffy to Zoro and back, then shook her head. "Wow... I was NOT expecting that. He's gonna need help…" she added, nudging her swords master and pointing to the rubber man. "Go make things simple for him and tell him what he has to do, because otherwise, he's not going to understand." Tikka held back a laugh, and glanced back at the door Nami had disappeared into. She felt bad for the girl...this was more drama than even Tikka liked, even if it was entertaining.

Zoro glanced at Tikka and then to Luffy, who was staring after Sanji with a mixed expression of shock and anger and then back to his hawkeyed female, "You live for this shit, don't you?" he asked her drily.

She chuckled behind her hand, "Drama's more entertaining when you aren't directly involved." She shrugged and tapped his cheek before letting her hand drop and brush against his stomach as she walked away, leaving Zoro alone on the deck with a bruised Luffy.

There was silence for a minute before Zoro rolled his eyes, "You're a moron," he told his friend, hauling the rubber man to his feet, "Did you find out what happened between you and Nami?"

Luffy blinked and turned his head to look at Zoro, "Ya…" he offered, looking like he was in slight shock still.

"Good. Look, you did things backwards. Did you understand anything that Sanji said to you?"

He shook his head, then nodded. Then shook his head again, "I dunno… he said to treat Nami like a princess."

Zoro counted backwards from five to check his patience, "Yes… he did say that. But what he was more concerned about is whether or not you are going to do something about the sex. It's bad manners to get it on and then leave them high and dry. What do you want to happen now between the two of you after all this?"

He watched Luffy's reaction, gauging it and he could practically see the cogs turning in his brain, "I want her to be happy," he finally said, his eyes glued to the door of the cartography room, "I want what you and Tikka have."

Zoro grinned and nodded, "Good. Good start."

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Franky: "Suuuppperrrr!"

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	25. Chapter 25

~Chapter Twenty-Five~

That night, Zoro had explained to him the finer points of the art of courting and seducing a woman. It just turned into this hilarity because it wasn't far into that conversation that Luffy discovered that if he asked awkward questions, Zoro would answer them before realizing what the question was and then would blow up at Luffy. Very little seriousness took place.

But there was a take home from it; he had to apologize to Nami and saying sorry wasn't enough. He had to do nice things for her and make her feel good inside so that she would see that he wasn't just interested in sex. He decided it couldn't be that hard. He already knew how to make her smile. Sanji said to treat her like a princess, and to feel good about the fact that Nami was his woman.

He could do that.

The ship was a little tense at breakfast the next morning. No one saw Nami and everyone was studiously avoiding talking about anything that involved mentioning her name and his name in the same sentence. No one said anything about the drama last night. The air was tight until Zoro finally snapped first, startling everyone.

"Geez, guys. We all know that there is a huge white elephant in the room. Luffy and Nami are gonna solve their issues. Now, relax and eat your food, for crissake."

"Don't waste any of it," Sanji warned, sliding a plate across the table to Luffy. The two males exchanged a look and Sanji seemed satisfied by the seriousness of the captain expression and a small smile tugged the corners of his mouth.

After that, things simmered out a little.

Mid-afternoon, Usopp spotted an island, which was good because Sanji was starting to complain that they were running low on supplies and Robin wanted some new books to read. The executive decision was made to dock the boat for the afternoon and resupply the ship and relax a little. After the intensity of the last couple of days together, everyone thought it would be a good idea to stretch their sea legs and get some different air.

* * *

><p>The following morning, Nami woke up knowing that she had about a minute to make it to the bathroom, or she was going to puke everywhere. She barely made it, and heaved the contents of her stomach into the toilet before groaning and falling back against the wall.<p>

Shower... yes. She needed to shower.

By the time she was feeling better, it was already lunch time. She finally emerged from the room to find that things seemed to have returned to normal. She glanced around, and spotted Luffy up on the figurehead, as usual. She flushed, turned away, and walked three steps before it was announced that they'd found an island.

The decision to dock was made quickly, and Nami took that opportunity to finally tell everyone what was going to happen within the next few weeks. They spent the next hour discussing their strategy as they drew closer to the island. Nami had conceded that stopping for the night would be fine, but that otherwise they were going to have to haul ass to try and save these two little girls.

Everyone had agreed, and in the morning, they planned on sailing, full speed, for Redgrove.

Decision made, the dock was now close enough that they became busy over the next hour pulling in, getting the supplies needed for the ship, and then the exploration of the town began. Nami was kidnapped by Robin and Tikka to go shopping, Franky, Usopp, and Chopper went looking for materials they would need for their respective professions. When Nami waved farewell, Sanji was guarding the boat and Luffy and Zoro were nowhere to be seen.

Which wasn't a problem, because she knew where they would be in a few hours, once the sun started setting. She'd already noticed the giant tavern in the center of the town, and knew that where all of the boys would be once night came.

As they shopped, Nami kept thinking about the way that Sanji had defended her. It was sweet, and frustrated her that Luffy lacked any sort of woman-skills. At least it would be nice to know that he wasn't interest and that they should resume just being friends.

Nami wasn't even sure if that was possible for her, but she'd rather have Luffy as a friend than nothing at all.

"Nami, stop looking so glum. Stop thinking about the captain for one night and just... be yourself and enjoy a ladies' day out," Tikka gently knocked Nami on the head, then hooked her arm through both Robin's and Nami's to lead them back towards the ship.

Nami glanced at Tikka's mischievous face, and sighed, deciding the hawkeyed girl was right. She needed to stop stressing and just enjoy herself for once. "Fine... who needs a man anyways?" Nami said with a grin that felt slightly forced. Tikka only laughed and shook her head, before avoiding answering that statement by jumping into the drama that Nami had missed in her absence.

Somewhere along the way, they'd run into Chopper, Franky, and Usopp, and had stolen the little reindeer to help carry their things. In his reindeer form, their bags and boxes of clothing, books, and other items were piled high and tied down with a strap. Chopper grumbled, but Robin laughed and fell back to walk next to him, chatting about this and that.

Finally, they emerged onto the docks, and took a while to get all of their things back on deck and into their respective rooms. By then, the stars were twinkling in the sky. Sanji insisted that they go enjoy the tavern while he guard the ship, and ushered even Chopper off the boat with strict orders to go have fun for him.

Nami felt a twinge of guilt. Sanji looked pretty blue since he'd found out about her and Luffy, and she felt bad, but at the same time, there was nothing she could do. She promised to bring him something from the tavern, and headed off with the girls and Chopper.

"This is going to be so much fun!" Tikka said with glee and hooked her arm with Nami again to drag her forward as the white-haired woman skipped and sang about bars and pirates.

Nami rolled her eyes but tried to get in the mood, and as the three woman and Chopper burst into the tavern, a loud roar of approval went up from many of the men. "Women!"

Tikks laughed, winked, and then sashayed away from all of them and headed for the bar with Nami and Robin in tow. Nami refused the drink that Tikka offered to her, and grimaced, saying, "I think I'll stay away from the sake for a little while...Considering my last escapade…" she flushed, her eyes drawn to Luffy for a split second before she forced herself to look back at Tikka, who was grinning in amusement.

"Alrighty, but that doesn't mean you can't partay!" Tikka grinned, and pulled them over towards the pool tables, where a furious match commenced between the four of them.

* * *

><p>When they docked, everyone went their separate ways to get supplies. Sanji put Zoro and Luffy in charge of the food – a dangerous request, considering Luffy was a foodie – and somehow, they managed to get lost. They spent much of the afternoon arguing about which way to go, got into a tussle and then stumbled their way back to town luckily just before the markets closed and purchased food. Both them of sported a black eye each and Luffy had a slash above his eyebrow from one of Zoro's swords and Zoro had a ring of mottled skin around his neck from where Luffy nearly strangled him.<p>

And they entered the tavern in town the best of friends.

"Luffy!" Zoro shouted across the bar, "Drink some more sake with me!"

"I am!" Luffy laughed, swigging his bottle. Zoro was sloshed and that was fortunate for him because he hadn't stopped drinking from the same bottle for three hours, where as the master swordsman was something like fifteen in. Completely belligerent. Luffy wasn't exactly eager to experience another black out night with sake. So… he pretended for Zoro.

The door to the tavern opened and the three girls walked in with Chopper and all the men in the bar whooped in excitement. Females were massively outnumbered in this place. Luffy chuckled when Zoro growled at some of the nearby males who were blatantly checking out Tikka as the little woman dragged both Robin and Nami to the pool tables to start a tournament. Nami and Tikka versus Robin and Chopper.

"Ooh! Zoro and I play winner!" Luffy hollered, putting on a good show that he was drunker than he was. He bounded over to the tables to watch and Zoro trailed along behind him.

The match started to get dirty. Robin was using her hands to reach balls out of the pockets and Tikka and Nami together were tricky, what with Tikka's precision and Nami's brains. Pretty soon, the whole damned tavern was watching, cheering teams on and putting money down on who was gonna win.

Nami and Tikka came out victorious and Luffy jumped on the opportunity to play. He handed Zoro a stick and snuck a glance at Nami. Normally a lush like Zoro, he noticed that she wasn't drinking anything. Clearly, what was on her mind was on his too. He zapped it out of his mind; he was determined to start this thing between them the right way.

The game started and within the first round, Tikka peeled out of her shirt so that she was just in her bikini top, much to the delight of the male spectators. Luffy had to lean on his stick he was laughing so hard at Zoro's reaction.

"That's cheating!" the swordsman complained, his eyes drinking in his woman and his face flushed from alcohol and lust.

"It's only cheating if it distracts you," she replied with a wink and blew a kiss at him. She proceeded to lean waaaay too far over the table and watch Zoro take his shot.

"You MISSED!" Luffy hollered, smacking him over the head, "That was a LINED UP SHOT! And you missed, you idiot!"

"What? Tell Tikka to stop cheating!" Zoro shouted back, waving his hand at her, "She's distracting me!"

"Stop distracting my partner!" Luffy turned his shouting at Tikka, but his smile was ear to ear.

"It's not me! He's half in the bag with sake!" she replied haughtily.

"Am not!" Zoro promptly slurred and stumbled into Luffy and both males dissolved into chuckles.

"Your turn, Nami," Luffy reminded her, standing his nakama up.

* * *

><p>Nami was feeling very bold after a few hours of relaxation in the tavern in an intense pool game against Chopper and Robin. She'd won, she was feeling excited, she was actually having some fun.<p>

So when Tikka dragged her shirt off and started to play pool in a bikini, effectively raising their chances, Nami didn't even hesitate to draw off her own shirt, revealing a deep purple bikini with a straw hat folly roger stitched on one breast. She'd forgotten that she'd made this swimsuit.

Her mind instantly jumped to the owner of the straw hat, and a light blush filtered into her features before she looked away and told herself to act like she normally would. And taking advantage of men with her body to win money was definitely something she was good at.

So she leaned down just as far as Tikka, her breasts laying over the pool stick and being pushed up and together alluringly. She smirked, doing her damnedest to not look at Luffy, and pulled the stick back.

Right as she was about to strike the ball, she lost the battle with herself, and her eyes flickered up to meet Luffy's stare, a hot, intense exchange of glances, before the sound of balls hitting each other drew her eyes away, finally.

Amazingly, it was the shot which one them the game. She blinked at the pool table, surprised, but then a huge roar went up and men started cheering and throwing money at each other to settle the bets being made. Nami straightened and glanced around, a grin unmistakably slipping on her features as Tikka hooked arms with her and cheered loudly, whooping and jumped up and down.

The motion had all of the men in front of them looking straight at Tikka's breasts as they bounced. With a roll of her eyes, Tikka suddenly whirled around, whipped out her sword, still in the scabbard, and swept it out and around in such a fast motion that a blast of hair sent all of the men onto their butts.

Tikka chuckled and turned around to find Zoro with a hot stared, before slowly striding towards her man as she twirled her sword, expertly, in one hand before bringing the weapon to her chest, the long blade nestling between her breasts, right as she got to Zoro and leaned up to place a kiss on his mouth.

Nami looked away from them, her eyes drawn to Luffy for the millisecond before something large blocked the light above her, and she turned to find a large man leaning over the pool table, his arms caging her in, as he grinned slyly down at her.

"My my, aren't you the pretty little flower? And so fiesty...I'll be your partner now, since yours seems to be occupied…" the man leaned down, and Nami promptly brought her knee up to his groin.

Faster than she could see, the guys knee came up and blocked her hit, making her wince in pain and glared at him in annoyance. "Get away from me, creep," she told him.

He didn't move, not even when she ran into his arm trying to get out. She tried to duck, and he lowered his arm. "Not so fast, copper-top...You're the sexiest babe in this room, and since I'm the strongest stud in this room, that makes us a match...now gimme a kiss, suga," with that, the man leaned down, making a kissy face.

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Zoro: Tikka… you cheated…

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	26. Chapter 26

~Chapter Twenty-Six~

"_Just don't give up, I'm working it out. Please don't give in, I won't let you down. It messes me up, need a second to breathe. Just keep coming around… hey." ~Adam Lambert_

When Nami leaned down to take her turn, he had enough sake in him to not immediately look away when the action pushed her breasts up. Fuzzy memories flashed through his mind and a slight blush stole over his face. Oh yeah. His recollections were definitely not lacking when it came to her rack.

She flickered her eyes up to his just as she jammed the stick forward to take the shot and his heart stopped, everything in the room narrowing down to that one heated glance. Fuck what Zoro said about starting it over from scratch. If she was gonna look at him like that, he couldn't not think about jumping her.

The clapping of balls drew his attention back to the game and suddenly, it was over. His jaw dropped as the bar erupted around them, Tikka and Nami whooping and hollering as he studied the table, confused about how the girls won. He wasn't even drunk!

"Fuck you, Zoro! You made us lose!" Luffy shouted at him.

"No way! The girls cheated!" Zoro retorted just as Tikka sauntered up to him and laid the hottest kiss Luffy had ever seen on the swordsman. Zoro looked stunned for a moment before he swept the hawkeyed female up and beelined for the door. It was painfully obvious they were about to find a dark corner somewhere.

Yuck. He switched his gaze back to the pool table, eyes darting back and forth when he heard Nami mutter something. He glanced up and his whole body tensed instantly, fire snapping through him.

Across the table, a beastly man had her pinned against the wood, caged by his arms. She was leaning back away from the guy, a disgusted expression on her face. Time slowed down. He watched as she shoved at the guy and brought her knee up to hit him where it hurt and then tried to duck around him. She spat "creep" in his face and still, the man leaned down and attempted to kiss her.

He didn't know what suddenly came over him, but his temper soared through the ceiling. He wasn't sure he could boil it down to one feeling; possessiveness, protectiveness, jealousy, he didn't know, but this guy was so going down for bothering her. Sanji's words echoed through his mind _Nami is a damned QUEEN. You treat her with respect or I'll beat your face in._

He jumped over the pool table and reeled his shoulder back, decking the guy as hard as he could. The man went careening back off his feet, crashing into some tables before settling into the wall, leaving a decent dent in the building.

"What the…" Nami murmured in confusion.

Luffy was on his feet, using his body to block her from view, his chest heaving, his expression black as he tried to check whatever just came over him, "Don't TOUCH my Nami!" he growled, hands in fists by his sides.

The man, obviously drunk and limber, peeled himself out of the wall and sat up, "What're you gonna do about it, runt?" he chuckled, wiping his hand across his bleeding forehead.

"I'll kick your ass is what! Stay away from her, got it?" Luffy replied fiercely.

"I'll grind you into a pulp!" this guy didn't take a hint, but apparently, some of his buddies did because they came forward and grabbed the man's arms to keep him from coming after Luffy.

"Leave the Straw Hat alone," one of them said, "You don't wanna get involved with him, dude. Lay off his woman."

"Ya! Lay off my woman!" Luffy repeated after them as they dragged their buddy away.

* * *

><p>She went stock still, and stared at the back of Luffy's head. He was declaring to a tavern full of people that she was his. It took her a full 30 seconds to react at all, she was so stunned. Then her heart started thumping in her chest, and even more butterflies went loose on her intestines.<p>

Happiness soared in her, and she could barely believe it. A part of her was terrified to ruin their perfect friendship with a failed romance, but a greater part of her so desperately wanted to try anyways.

So to reward him for his chivalrous attitude, Nami tugged at his shirt until she'd stepped around him and traded places, essentially pinning him to the pool table now. She hesitated, a shy blush creeping up her features all of a sudden, but she muscled through it and walked one hand up his chest and around his neck to tug his head down while her other hand slid up under his shirt to splay over his taunt abs, sending a shiver of excitement through her.

Licking her lips, she stood on her toes a little and kissed him in a slow, smoldering kiss as her fingers curled against his stomach and her heart started running a marathon in her chest.

* * *

><p>He was still thrumming from fury, his eyes watching as the beefy man was ushered out of the bar when Nami poked out from around him and successfully crowded him back against the pool table. His hands went behind him to brace against the lip of the wood as his brain made a serious effort to play catch up.<p>

His body tensed as she leaned into him and walked her hand up his chest before curling around his neck. He knew only milliseconds before she was gonna do it that she was planning on laying a scorching kiss on him and the awareness of the action tingled through him. The whole tavern disappeared around them and it all came down to the flicker of her eyes to his mouth, her tongue darting out to smooth over her lips and then…

He must've met her in the middle somewhere as he leaned down to kiss her back, one hand coming up behind the small of her back to pull her into flush into him. It was gloriously satisfying… he forgot basic body functions like how to breathe when she nibbled at his lip and slipped her hand under his shirt to drag her nails over his stomach. It brought back vivid, startling memories of their one night stand and in that moment, he would not have been abject to taking her upstairs and having a repeat that he'd actually remember…

It was over as soon as it started and she gave him a saucy wink and sauntered away to join Robin and Chopper at the card table, leaving Luffy utterly paralyzed and limp against the wooden billiard table. The tavern erupted into wolf-whistles and cat-calls as the men congratulated him on "winning the girl" and "staking claim". A slow smile spread over his face, a goofy grin accompanied by a fierce flush. They had no idea how hard he worked for that one 15-second encounter.

"Next round's on me!" he hollered, pumping his fists into the air and the roar of approval was deafening. As everyone seemed focused on the bartender, he took that moment to slip out of the bar, feeling like the heat of the place was going to end him.

The cool night air was a relief on his fevered skin and he leaned against the side of the building in the alleyway. Zoro and Tikka – thankfully – were not in this particular one and he was alone. That stupid grin had yet to fade from his face as his mind kept replaying the shenanigans from a few seconds before. Nami kissed him. He could only assume that meant that she wasn't upset with him over his lack of memory anymore. Did that mean she was willing to give this fire between them a try too?

Too jittery to not act out, he did a crazy little fist pump dance, stamping his feet into the ground. Man! This was so awesome!

* * *

><p>Nami couldn't help herself as she glanced over her shoulder to see the silly grin on Luffy's face before he announced that the nest round of drinks was on him. Her stomach did a funny flip to see that he was just as flushed and flustered as she was.<p>

He turned towards the bar, and she quickly looked away lest she be caught oogling him. She was staring at her cards in her hand without seeing them when Robin chuckled, and suddenly a hand bloomed out of her wrist and waved in front of her face.

Nami blinked, looked up, and found Robin and Chopper staring at her with these sly, knowing stares. A hot blush flared over her cheeks and she looked down at her cards. "Whose turn is it?"

"Are you sure playing cards is what you want to do right now?" Chopper asked in a teasing voice, leaning on the table from where he was standing on the chair to be level with their eyes.

"Indeed, our captain is currently taking a breather outside of the tavern... if you hurry, you'll be able to catch him," Robin said smoothly, but her eyes had that same teasing glimmer to them as Chopper's had.

Nami's mouth popped open in surprise, and she was prepared to tell them that nothing was happening between her and Luffy – a knee-jerk reaction, one she'd been relying on for the past few weeks, but she snapped it closed.

She supposed there was no more denying it, especially since she'd laid that kiss on him in front of everyone.

So, squaring her shoulder in determination, Nami slapped her cards down on the table, said, "You both owe be ten beris for kicking your butts," then hurried for the door. Behind her, she could hear chuckles from Robin and Chopper.

The cool night air was a relief on her hot face. She glanced around, and couldn't see Luffy. Frowning slightly, she headed towards the side of the building, peeked around the corner, and found her captain doing a victory dance.

He stopped suddenly when he spotted her, his face dropping into a somewhat neutral expression. But he gave himself away by pursing his lips together and glancing away from her. She linked her fingers behind her back and leaned her shoulders against the wall, rocking forward on her heels.

He wondered if she saw him doing the victory dance. He hoped he wouldn't have to explain it. He'd been convinced for a couple of days there that they were never going to be on speaking terms ever again beyond the captain and the navigator. He was elated now that things were on their way back to normal.

"Will you walk me back to the ship? I don't want those guys giving me a hard time again." she asked and a slow grin spread over his face.

"Ya, I can do that," he told her pushing off the wall and approaching her. She looked so alluring standing there. Or maybe he was just super aware of her right now. He threw one arm out against the wall by her head, trapping her in the alley with his body and his other hand started for her hip but his gaze dropped to her bikini and was instantly attracted to the folly roger there, stitched white with a straw hat on the skull. His grin got even bigger and a small chuckle escaped him. He reached out to trace the design with the tip of his finger.

"I like this," he commented, a smile in his voice as well as his face, "Everyone knows your part of my crew," he tipped his head in and gave her a swift kiss on the cheek before stepping back from her and grabbing her hand to walk back with her to the ship.

"So, here's what I'm thinking," he started, swinging her arm gently, a physical outlet that betrayed his excitement, "When we get to Redgrove, this is how I'm gonna kick this Watcher guy's ass…"

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Luffy: YOSHA!

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	27. Chapter 27

~Chapter Twenty-Seven~

He walked her all the way back to the ship, and then they went their separate ways, even though Nami didn't want to. She reluctantly dropped his hand and said goodnight, because while this newfound… relationship, perhaps? Was exciting and amazing, she was still cautious. She needed to go slow. At least, for the moment. She couldn't kid herself though in that she did find Luffy… sexy. Which was weird, because he was always so goofy, but he had his own sex appeal. The little smirk he'd get, or earlier when he was completely shameless in tracing the folly roger on her bathing suit top. She tried hard not to think about it, but sometimes when she was alone with just her thoughts, her brain would travel back to their one night stand. His face… his body…

But despite that, she couldn't forget about Watcher and Redgrove. Her mind constantly shifted back to those two little girls that she'd fallen in love with on her short time at the island. She worried about them constantly, and lately she'd begun to feel more and more sick, not better. She hadn't gone to see Chopper yet, she figured it was just a part of the recovery from that horrid poison. She'd wait a little longer and see if she started feeling better. No need to make a big deal of anything.

So with her mind full of these thoughts, and of thoughts of a certain Rubberman, Nami turned her back to him and walked up the stairs to the girl's room, her hips swaying slowly as she went, dragging her feet as she glanced back at Luffy once more, then went to bed.

* * *

><p>Sanji took a long draw from his cigarette and held his breath for a minute before letting it out slowly. He finished all the chores on the ship in the course of the day. It seemed strange that he opted to stay and guard the ship this time; usually Zoro did it or Chopper and Usopp. But today… he couldn't. He was so upset with his captain and with this whole situation with Nami that he just needed some time to cope.<p>

Voices drifted out over the water and he turned his gaze to see the devil himself and Nami coming up the docks. Sanji pitched his smoke into the water and watched them. It looked like they had made up for the most part. They were holding hands and Luffy was talking animatedly. A little smirk pulled up the corners of the cook's mouth as the rubber man let go of her for a minute to perform a detailed encounter of some fight that he was going to do. Then, he settled down and after a heartbeat, he scooped up Nami's hand and said something to her more calmly and she winked at him and he laughed.

Sanji shook his head. Luffy might not have a fucking clue about women, but if Luffy was good at anything, he was good at taking care of his nakama. And if he and Nami were back on speaking terms, then Sanji had faith that she'd keep him in line.

He smacked the bottom of his pack against his palm and then drew another smoke out of the box. As he lit it, his eyes flickered back to the couple on the docks. Well, he supposed that if Sanji couldn't have Nami, then that blithering rubbery idiot would do just fine. He had to have faith in Luffy; after all, he was the captain.

* * *

><p>The tension on the Sunny-Go had fizzled down to typical after the one night at the tavern. It became clear that the captain and his navigator were on speaking terms again, if not even more. Naturally, they discussed the progress they were making to Redgrove and Nami would scold him for something and he would laugh. Sometimes, though, it was plainly obvious in the way they talked that they were both thinking about something quite different than talk. At least once someone – usually Tikka – would catch them kissing to which they would both jump and Nami would stutter some excuse and walk away and Luffy would rub the back of his neck and grin.<p>

Five days later, they were still a week away from Redgrove. Tikka had come to Nami that morning, proclaiming that it was a beautiful day and that they needed to take advantage of it and relax a little. Nami had been suspicious, because the little hawkeyed girl had had this glimmer of mischief in her eyes, but then, she had that often…

They set up their lounge chairs up on the highest deck, and then Tikka took her top off. That wasn't too unusual; Nami tanned topless all the time, so she reciprocated and removed her own bikini top, and lay on her stomach and pulled her hair over one shoulder.

After about fifteen minutes of lounging in the sun, Nami sat up and asked about suntan lotion, feeling a tad crispy on her back. The sun of this region was particularly strong, though not as strong as the Alabasta sun.

Tikka popped up, grabbed her top, and took off with a wink, saying she'd go get it and a few drinks for them as well. Nami barely had time to thank her before the girl was gone. Shaking her head at the energy that Tikka always seemed to have—just like Luffy—and laid back down.

Down on the lower deck, Tikka ran until she found Luffy, sitting on the masthead, as usual, and having a chat with Zoro. Tikka grinned. Perfect. Two birds with one stone. She ran right up to Luffy, which earned her a glare from Zoro when she didn't greet him first.

"Luffy. Nami needs help putting suntan lotion on. Here, take this, and go." Without waiting for a reply, she reached up, tugged the captain down forcible, shoved the lotion into his hand, and shoved him towards the stairs that led down to the middle deck and then up to the high deck.

She barely waited for Luffy to be out of sight before she turned to Zoro with a wide grin, reached up, then undid the strings of her bikini, letting it fall to the ground. "I'm going to need some help too, baby."

She had that meddling look about her again. He narrowed his eyes at her when she hustled onto the deck with a bottle of tanning lotion in her hands and something else too that he couldn't recognize.

"Here, go, take this," she all but shoved Luffy towards the upper deck, making the captain stumble. He glanced back at Zoro with a puzzled look before he shrugged and headed in the direction Tikka indicated.

No sooner was he out of sight than Tikka plucked the strings of her bikini and dropped her top, immediately drawing Zoro's attention back. He cocked an eyebrow at her and dropped his eyes down to the thing in her hand. He could see a purple string dangling between her fingers and a red and orange swatch that looked like it could be a straw hat folly roger…

"You devil woman… that's Nami's top, isn't it?" he growled at her with a grin, "You're meddling with them…" he brought his hand up to brush it over her breast, the temptation too much to resist.

She smirked wickedly, "Just pushing them in the right direction," she winked.

He chuckled, twisting her around so that he could pin her between the railing and his body, a flash of lust in his eyes that promised naughty things.

* * *

><p>Luffy headed up to the top deck. It was a nice day out, but surprisingly, most of the crew were elsewhere on the ship, probably in respective rooms, cooking, inventing, reading…<p>

He spotted Nami right away and didn't pause in his step to her until he realized that she was laying in the chair, hair pulled over one shoulder and her back… was bare. Topless, actually. No strings there. This shouldn't have made his heart stutter. He couldn't count on all his digits how many times he'd seen Nami in various states of undress BEFORE their one night stand. Maybe because he now knew how she reacted when he touched her…

A mischievous smirk spread over his face and he started walking slowly, on tip toes, along the edge of the ship that she was facing away from. He opened the bottle on his way and poured a heaping amount into his palm, more than he knew she would ever need in a given week of sunbathing and approached her chair.

Stealing himself with a breath to face her flash temper, he flipped his hand over and smooshed the lotion over her bare shoulders with a gross sucking sound. She shrieked. He laughed a little evilly and plopped down on the deck to tilt his head at her, his face crushed up into a grin.

"Did I scare you?" he asked, rubbing the slick lotion all over her, covering her in it.

Startled, Nami half rolled over to find Luffy grinning down at her with a flush across his face. She gaped at him, then looked down when she realized something important. Because he had so much lotion on his hands, as she turned to see who had suddenly touched her back, his hands had stayed in place rather than staying on her back.

He was, essentially, palming the side of her breast. She flushed red, and froze rather than push him away. "I…uh…" she pulled herself together, because she had to get a hold of herself. She'd flashed Luffy many times, along with the rest of the crew. Touching though… well, that was a bit more intense.

Her stomach twisted in delight, and she bit her lip in hesitation a moment before she rolled all the way onto her back, propping herself up on her elbows, and proudly displayed the goods. She shifted just so that his hand remained on her skin, and her breath stuttered out of her body from the heady rush of lust that kicked in from his touch.

Her cheeks were rosy with heat, her eyes smoldering, and she said in a blasé tone, "I'd appreciate a full service job, garcon." Her voice was somewhat husky, and her eyes flickered down to his lips and back to his eyes.

He froze, eyebrows shooting up to his hairline and a flush stealing over his face. A pinprick of doubt crept over her. Was it too much? Did she scare him?

He swallowed hard, his gaze flickering down to stare where his hands were. Then back up to her eyes as she gave him the hottest look through her lashes. The situation just went from comic mischief to sexual that fast.

* * *

><p>AN:

Final Thought from Nami: Your move, senchou…

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	28. Chapter 28

~Chapter Twenty-Eight~

_******* LIME WARNING *******_

_**If you don't like it, you're lying.**_

Threat of death couldn't have stopped him in that moment. Luffy crawled onto the lounge chair with her, one knee braced between hers, the wood creaking with his added weight. It didn't matter that he was smothered in oil to his wrists; he slid his hand up around the nape of her neck and leaned over her to give her a feverish kiss. It was hard to deny the sexual tension between them; he supposed that happened when you started a relationship on sex.

The hand that still remained in her breast became bolder and he stroked his thumb over the peak, the lack of friction and the warmth of the tanning oil titillating. But for him, this was old news; he'd done this before and he knew that she liked it. He wanted to do things to her that he didn't remember doing; things she said that he must've done. He wanted to rock her world like she had his and he wanted to remember every fucking second of it.

He slid his hand down over her ribs and the dip in her stomach, the oil spreading over her skin until he could pluck the tie on the side of her bikini bottom. She made him feel bolder, her sexual intensity rubbing off on him and before he could lose whatever bravado he was about to muster, he slipped his hand under the material of the swimsuit to touch her where he knew that she was hottest.

A sound of surprise, deepened from a sudden onslaught of desire, slipped from her lips, a moment before his lips suddenly claimed hers in a fast and sudden kiss. Her head spun and her heart started beating faster.

"Luffy," she murmured, unknowingly sensually, her fingers curling around his impressive biceps and clung for dear life as his hand slid down her stomach, the smooth slickness from her tanning lotion making her wet in the worst of ways for him. Her nails dug into his skin as her hips shifted and undulated subtly.

She didn't feel the bathing suit untie until the material slithered off her hip, and she jerked in surprise, her head falling back as the sensation was immediately followed by those deft fingers sliding lower and over her heat.

She moaned, low and softly, as her legs fell open for him like a flower and her back arched, thrusting her peaked breasts upwards.

Driven, in her haze of lust, Nami's right hand released its grip on her arm and slithered down his chest, over those wondrous abs of his, and traced the line of his hips and his pants, panting gently from the pleasure his fingers were shooting through her body in hot waves.

He was oblivious to the fact that they were on the deck, where anyone could easily walk up the stairs and see them in this heated exchange. His whole world was focused right down to the two of them, of Nami and her throaty moans that sent his blood pressure spiking and how she was grinding her hips against his hand.

His skin tingled as she dragged her fingertips over his chest and stomach before curling into the hem of his shorts. It felt… nothing short of sublime and his mind flashed to how good it was to have her touch him that night. The memory of it was enough to flash heat through his blood like he was going to burn up from the inside but he didn't want it. Well, he did want it, fuck it was TORTURE to think that all he had to do was take her hand and guide it down…

He grabbed her wrist with his free hand and thrust it up and above her head, effectively stealing away the potential contact. His weight was supported by his knee on the chair and his foot on the deck next to her chair, but holding her hands above her head had him looming over her.

"Just you," he told her, his voice gravelly and harsh, his lungs stuttering. He didn't care that she was covered in oil; he leaned down and dragged his mouth over her breast while his hand worked against her heat. His head spun and turned hazy at the soft, sexy sounds she made. He could listen to those all day…

"Say my name again, Nami…" he rumbled against her breast.

Only seconds after she managed to slip the tip of her finger under his shorts, suddenly he pinned her arm above her head. The motion had him looming over her, his body nearly blanketing hers and sending her blood pressure through the roof.

"Just you."

His face was tight with restraint but his eyes glowed with excitement, and the sound of his voice, gravelly and harsh, made her heart skip a beat as her body to wind tighter, thrashing her head to the side as she moaned his name.

His lips, his face nuzzling her breasts, had arching up, shifting her hips instantly, grinding against his hand as the pleasure went up a degree. The hand that had been gripping his bicep suddenly released him and shot down between him, covering his larger hand with her hand insistently, and shifted him just... slightly to the sweet spot.

Her hips jerked and her head fell back with a bit-back moan, and a harsh gasp of Luffy's name, as she wiggled her greased wrist around enough to grasp his hand tightly when the climax hit her hard.

Her right hand released his hand just as suddenly as she'd covered it, and swiftly reached up and curled her fingers in to his shirt in a tight fist as her body rode out the aftershocks.

Spent, she suddenly went limp under him, almost trembling from the force of the climax. She shivered, and peeled open her eyes to look up at Luffy with a holy-hell-you-rocked-my-world look, one that smoldered in the aftermath, before a smile tugged at her lips and a blush suddenly covered her already-pink cheeks.

He didn't think this could get any hotter between them; he was certain smoke was going to start drifting into the air. Then, she slipped her hand from his grip and slid it between their bodies to cover his hand. He stilled for half a heartbeat, a shot of panic coursing through him. What was she…?

All she did was shift his hand up just a touch and suddenly, she flipped out, her hips jerking and his name tumbling from her lips. Her whole body tightened and some instinctual part of him knew that this was exactly the reaction he wanted from her, this wild jolt of pleasure. She gripped his shirt in a white-knuckled grip and it as only after a few minutes of utter stillness that she turned her eyes up to his, hot, satiated. A shiver rippled over her and a slow smile worked at the corners of her lips.

He matched her grin with one of his own and a small chuckle escaped him. He tied up the edge of her bottom again and situated his body weight so that he could lie over her, elbows propped next to her head. Hot damn, he made a mental note to have her show him more places that made her crazy…

"That was awesome…" he smirked, his voice a little breathless. They were both flushed and slick from the abundance of oil all over them, ruining his shirt and making her hair stick up. He didn't even remotely care, "We are soooo doing that again." he shimmied down her and laid his head against her breasts, successfully pillowed there. She smelled like tangerines and tanning oil.

Nami was a little stunned. Her brain was having difficulty catching up after it was so well side-tracked by that explosive orgasm. He covered her body with his, trapping her between his arms, and smirked down at her.

Her breath caught, and she could only stared at him, her mouth slightly open, as he went on about how awesome that had been and how they were definitely doing it again sometime. Then, just like that, he shimmied down and pillowed his head on her breaths with a happy sigh.

She... couldn't agree more.

This was so easy, to be with him like this. He just made it feel natural. Right. Perfect.

She lifted her arms up and wrapped them around him, funneling the fingers of her right hand through his hair in a gentle caress as her body slowly came back down to earth from where he'd shot it up into the sky.

Her left hand skimmed lower until she could steal under his shirt and slide her hand up the flesh of his back, feeling the strong muscles that made him one of the most feared men in the world. A shiver of awareness went through her, and she realized with a shock that she could, in fact, do this for hours. Just the feel of him had her body warming up again even after what he'd just done to her.

Still, she was enjoying this quieter moment, and laid her head back and closed her eyes, slowly stroking his skin and combing out his hair as she finally found her voice and murmured, "Next time I get to play too, Monkey D. Luffy…" her voice was husky from their encounter, and she murmured his name with particular relish. She enjoyed saying his name, especially when he was driving pleasure from her.

"You made me all oily," she added in a whinier tone, unable to help the teasing smile that played over her lips, even though her eyes stayed closed and her hands continued to stroke him leisurely.

"You like it," he replied.

She combed her hand through his hair, her other going down the back of his tee shirt and lightly dragging her fingernails against his skin. His whole body thrummed from the contact, hyper aware yet super relaxed. He could hear her heartbeat, her breath and she was so warm and alive. It made him feel great, like he could do just about anything.

She slurred his name and a slow grin spread over his face and he kinked his neck back to glance up at her. So content, her eyes closed, but a little playful smile tugged her lips and the look was wholly wicked. Oh ya, she could play next time… so long as she said his name like that again.

He tucked his head back down on her breasts and because it was literally right there in his face, he turned his face to capture her nipple with a teasing "nom" sound before settling down and closing his eyes. Between the combination of her warm body, the hot sun and her hands in his hair, it was optimal nap time.

A/N:

The misspelled "folly" roger was intentional. "Jolly" plus "faux" equals "folly".

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	29. Chapter 29

~Chapter Twenty-Nine~

_***** LIME WARNING *****_

_If you don't like it, you're lying._

The sun was setting by the time he finally woke up. Long shadows were covering the deck and the smell of food from the kitchen drifted up through the boards. He shifted and found that he was still lying with Nami on the chair but somehow, they'd moved around so that they were beside each other, her head against his shoulder and his arms wrapped around her. Her bikini top was dangling over the end of the lounge.

He yawned and stretched out, extending his arms and legs a little longer than was anatomically correct before settling down and wrapping his arms around Nami a couple of times, pulling her still naked and oiled body against him.

Then… his stomach churned with hunger and he peeled open one eye to glance down at her with a mulish expression, "Nami…" he hissed, linking his hand around to tap her nose, "Nami…. I'm so hungry…" the desire to eat warred heavily with his desire to stay here with her in the diminishing sun.

* * *

><p>The sound of her name being called tugged Nami out of the comfortable sleep she'd slipped into, and came awake to Luffy's face looming over hers as he hissed about dire hunger. When it came to food, everything was life or death for Luffy.<p>

A small smile curved her lips, and her eyes flickered down to see that they were still on that lounge chair together, shifted so that the majority of her was now pillowed by his body, and his long rubbery arms were wrapped securely around her.

Her heart clenched as happiness swept through her. She'd never woken feeling safer, and she felt, without a doubt, that Luffy would let nothing happen to her, even in their sleep.

She also noticed that her bathing suit top had reappeared. Tikka must have finally returned it… She should be miffed at the girl's devious actions, but when she thought about the results they produced… well. Tikka:1. Nami: 0.

Heat warmed her cheeks, and she momentarily buried her face against his chest and inhaled the scent of him, thoroughly enjoying the moment. But then his stomach growled again, and with a rueful sigh, she unwrapped his arms from her naked torso, plucked her bikini top from the end of the chair, and sat with her back to him as she tied the strings around her neck.

"Then let's go get dinner," she said with a wink over her shoulder.

* * *

><p>The night had been a rather enjoyable one, and they'd ended up playing a huge game of tag when Luffy grabbed the most delicious of the desserts and took off with everyone on his tail. An hour later, Luffy had an egg on his head and Nami, Robin, and Tikka were enjoying the dessert on the deck.<p>

That night, it was Robin's turn to take watch, so Tikka and Nami headed to the rooms together alone, and chatted with each other about men for a good hour before they slid into sleep. It didn't last long, though, when Nami was suddenly awoken by a creaking floorboard, and opened one eye to see Zoro silently closing the door, and then slowly and carefully walk towards Tikka's bed.

A sly smile curved her lips as she sat up enough to alert Zoro to her wakefulness. The swordsman froze, a slight look a panic on his features, but Nami only rolled her eyes and said quietly, "I'm so outta here."

So as Zoro stared at her, she got up out of bed, pulled on a pair of shorts - because she slept in her panties, naturally - then headed for the door. It was only as she put her hand on the doorknob that Zoro finally got what she was implying, and turned towards the sleeping Tikka with a heated and excited expression on his face.

Nami could barely keep back a laugh as she closed the door behind her, and headed down the stairs towards the boy's room. She could have just slept in the library for the night; she had a bed set up in there for those late mapping nights. But Zoro's sneaky behavior gave her the idea.

She was as silent as she could be as she opened the door to the dormitory, and was instantly greeted by snores coming from both Usopp and Franky. She stifled a laugh, until her eyes found Luffy's bed. Her heart fluttered in excitement, and she bit her lip in a moment of hesitation before she tiptoed over to him.

Jumping up and into the bed was easy; it took a lot more than that to wake Luffy up. In fact, as she fit herself down next to him, cuddling up to his warm body, he didn't even stir. Rolling her eyes at him, she leaned down and laid her lips on his neck, nibbling and kissing insistently as she promptly slid her hand down his bare stomach, and into his pants.

With a shiver of heat running down her spine, she wrapped her fingers around the length of him and squeezed gently, her tongue shooting out to lick his neck.

* * *

><p>He was in the middle of a vivid dream involving a sea king and a fishman monster mermaid and Sanji cooking him some fabulous barbeque when the image shifted suddenly, colors drifting through his mind; reds and yellows and violent purples. He could smell tangerines and money and sensation washed over him that had his muscles twitching and his head rotating on his shoulders.<p>

He pushed through the fog of sleep that coated his consciousness and the first thing he became physically aware of was that someone was in his bunk with him. And that person was very close in his space and… had their hand… in his pants…

He nearly shot out of the bed with a gasp, shooting up to his elbows and jarring Nami next to him. He blinked at her, then clapped his hand over his mouth when the snores of Franky and Usopp were disturbed for a minute. She had moved with him and he became aware of a couple of things; one, she still had her hand downs his pants and he was really starting to feel it and two, she was kissing his neck and not at all perturbed that he moved.

The shock of being startled awake dissipated rapidly as his whole body flushed warm and he chuckled quietly at her and fell against the pillows. He reached his hand down the back of her head until he could grasp her coppery locks and pull her up for a silent, yet devastating kiss. He rolled his hips against her hand insistently, hypnotized by the sensations. It was so different than when she worked him with her mouth; this was somehow just as hot, yet softer and more content.

With the hand not threaded through her hair, his other pushed up the front of her sleeping tank to touch the expanse of her ribcage and breasts, still soft after being smothered in oil this morning. In his half-still-asleep haze, he moved slowly and lazily, his mind fighting the whole 'waking up' thing. He was so much more aware of her when he closed his eyes.

* * *

><p>Nami had her hand in his pants for all of a minute, squeezing and stroking him, when sudden he came awake with a gasp and shot up in bed. She deftly moved up with him to avoid getting her chin slammed by his shoulder. Stifling a laugh, Nami resumed her previous endeavors and continued to kiss along his neck and shoulder, shifting against him suggestively as she enjoyed the feel of their bodies rubbing against one another. He finally laid back down, and the sound of his soft chuckle making her stomach clench in anticipation.<p>

He tugged her up for a fierce kiss, one which made her dizzy, before he settled back down and languidly started touching her skin under her shirt. The feel of his fingers sliding over her soft skin shot shivers of awareness up and down her body, and she unconsciously stretched out next to him to give him better access, rubbing her exposed stomach against his side.

She tightened her grasp around his shaft as she nuzzled his chest and kissed along his collarbone. The last time she'd handled Luffy in this way, she'd been so drunk she could barely think straight, but now she was sober, and as her fingers pulled up his shaft, she realized something about Luffy. His penis was made out of rubber, like the rest of him. Obviously.

A slow, devastating smirk of sudden inspiration lit her features. She tightened her grip on him even more, and started from the base up as she slowly pulled upwards, stretching him, both intensifying the pleasure as well as elongating it, until finally, her fingers slid over the tip of him. She'd pulled him up way past his navel, tugged up the sheets with her other hand to keep them concealed, as she slid her hand down his stomach for another go.

Her lips slid down to his nipple, her tongue swirling out to taste him as she repeated her previous movement, but faster. She gained momentum, tugging, stroking, pulling, squeezing, all in a rhythmic pattern as her lips switch directions now. She kissed her way up his throat until she could capture his lips to stifle his sounds as her fingers moved even faster, her breath coming a little fast as her own body flushed with heat and lust just from touching him.

* * *

><p>Her hand working over him had his breath coming in faster pants. She rubbed her body against him, the bare skin exposed from him pushing up her shirt against his bare chest. He dragged his hands over her, up her back, through her hair, his fingers in claws to outlet his sexual frustration. It took everything in him to not utter a single word so that he didn't wake the rest of the dorm; it seemed her personal goal to torture him into making noise.<p>

She made her way over his neck and collarbone and he tipped his head to the side to give her better access, ripples of pleasure shooting up and down his spine at her hand. Then, she did something he never would have expected and it had him jacking his hips up and chewing on his lip to keep from groaning.

She… stretched him. He knew he was made of rubber from his bones to his skin, but this was unbelievable. It was pain and pleasure and it never seemed to end. He held his breath as she pulled up, stroking him, killing him and the muscles in his neck and shoulders twitched with the effort to hold it all back. His fingers found purchase in her hips, gripping hard until she finally released him. She crawled up him to give him a kiss, stifling her name was it tumbled from his mouth and then the subsequent growl of desire as he felt her go back down for a round two.

His heart couldn't handle it.

It was over so fast he couldn't have seen it coming. His hips kicked up, he bit out her name in a harsh whisper and his hands dug into her ass as his whole world crumbled and shattered and came back together in a flash of colors and rushing blood. All the feeling left his toes and his body melted into the bed as he came down, trembling slightly from the force of it. When he finally found the strength to open his eyes slightly, a little sleepy, post-coital grin spread over his face.

"You can wake me up like that anytime…" he whispered raggedly.

* * *

><p>Pure satisfaction washed over her as she felt his physical reaction to what she was doing to him. He had to stay silent, so she was extra-attuned to his body, his tensing muscles, his jerking hips, to guide her as she pleased him. From what she could tell, she was certainly pleasing him.<p>

Her heart hammered in her chest, and a part of her mind was still in shock over this situation. If someone had told her, years ago, that she would one day be in her captain's bunk doing these things to him, she would have laughed in their face.

But now…

She shuddered with him when he came, her awareness heightened by her own arousal that stemmed from his. His fingers digging into her ass drew a grin from her as heat and lightning mingled in her stomach. Just as quickly as he came, soon he went limp, falling into his pillows and blankets like melted rubber. He opened his eyes somewhat reluctantly, and happiness surged in her chest in satisfaction.

She very much enjoyed bringing him pleasure, she'd discovered. Content and somewhat sleepy herself, she snuggled down next to him, pulling the sheet up and over her body, and kissed his chest as she murmured quietly, "it will be my pleasure...goodnight, Luffy…"

She yawned, then nuzzled her face against his shoulder and drifted to sleep slowly, contentedly.

* * *

><p>AN:

Computer troubles plus grad school equals no time to post chapters! Sorry! I'll try to do better. We are about halfway through this story now. :)

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	30. Chapter 30

~Chapter Thirty~

Nami came awake suddenly and with the knowledge that she had about 2.2 seconds to get to the bathroom, or she was going to puke all over the bed. She shot upright, her stomach knotting and queasy, and barely had time to register the fact that she was in the boy's dormitory before she scrambled hurriedly to get out of the bunk.

Her actions unwittingly caused the whole bunk to tilt dangerously, and as she let herself fall to the ground, the whole bed turned enough that Luffy's sleeping form also hit the ground with a loud thump. She barely even spared him a glance, but instead shot for the door to the bathroom, and disappeared behind it.

There, she fell to her knees and puked her guts out into the toilet.

* * *

><p>He was such a dead sleeper that it wasn't until he literally hit the floor that he came awake with a shout of pain and a flailing of limbs. He sat up fast enough, his adrenaline pumping from the sudden wake-up call just in time to see Nami whip around the corner of the doorframe and slam into the bathroom.<p>

He blinked for a minute, getting his bearings. He was alone in the room; except her, which was less embarrassing. Zoro and Sanji were early risers but the fact that the rest of the boys were missing suggested that it was later than when he normally got up. Man, he slept so great with Nami curled up next to him…

The sound of vomiting brought his head swiveling to the bathroom door and his heart jumping and curiosity piquing. Nami… was she sick?

He clambered to his feet a little unsteadily, his muscles still sleeping and shouldered into the bathroom. She was leaned over the porcelain goddess, her head in the bowl, her shoulders heaving. He dropped down to her and grabbed all her copper waves and pulled them away from her face and laid a hand over her back.

"What's going on with you?" he asked when a lull in the puking had her laying her cheek against her arm, "I thought Chopper fixed you all up from the withdrawals…" he made a valiant attempt to braid her hair back and only succeeded in twisting it up. He tucked it into the back of her tank.

* * *

><p>Even though she was busy emptying her stomach of its contents, she was still aware when Luffy came in, and immediately wished she was dead. Puking in front of her captain was bad enough, but puking in front of someone she had romantic interests in? Way worse.<p>

But then he did the sweetest thing by pulling her hair back from her face and rubbing her back gently. When she felt like her stomach was completely empty and couldn't possible empty itself any more, she reached up a shaking hand, grabbed a towel, and wiped her face off as she scooted back to lean against the wall.

"Chopper said I was all clear, but I keep getting nauseous all the time…" she murmured, burying her face in the towel and shuddering from the after-effects of puking so early in the morning. "On and off, but I feel like maybe it's getting worse…"

She didn't look at him, feeling too embarrassed by their situation, and instead decided to keep her face buried in the towel. She couldn't help but think of what she'd done to him last night, and how hot it had been. And then she'd woke him up by puking... so not attractive.

"It's fine, Luffy, you should go. I'm just gonna clean up. I'm feeling better already," she told him, her voice muffled by the towel, in an attempt to save herself some dignity all-considering.

* * *

><p>She stuffed her face into a towel and muttered to him about it being really okay. He didn't buy it. He leaned up and grabbed a small face cloth and ran the cold water over it. Then, he pulled the towel from her face and placed the cool cloth against her face like he'd had when she was going through her withdrawals.<p>

"Every morning?" his eyebrows shot up in surprise, "So… you're barfing your brains out every morning since we got back?" he did some math in his head. That was like, two weeks! Clearly, she was not better. He was no doctor, but he knew that vomiting every day wasn't good for anyone.

"Come on," he stood and pulled her up to her feet and promptly swept his arm under her knees to lift her up effortlessly, "We're going to see Chopper." His tone left little room for argument and the fact that he wasn't letting her walk on her own two feet suggested that whatever room for argument there was, he wasn't giving her any.

"Luffy, this is outrageous!" she yelled at him, raising her fists and striking his chest, somewhat gently. Her fists just bounced off him harmlessly and she just continued to glare up at him even as she cuddled closer to his chest, pulling the cloth up onto her warm forehead.

He tromped out of the dorm and upstairs to the medical room. He knew the reindeer was in there even before he literally kicked the door in with the ball of his foot, "CHOPPER!" he hollered unnecessarily, startling the good doctor with a squeak and fall out of his chair, "Nami's sick and you need to fix her!"

* * *

><p>She stiffened like a wet cat at his yelling, "Luffy, I can walk," she growled at him. Her fingers curled around his biceps, clinging to him as Chopper grew into his heavy point and approached her haltingly, getting over the surprise heart-attack of Luffy's arrival. The reaction, to cling to him, had been instinctual and unconscious, almost as if she felt safer with Luffy than anyone in the world, even a doctor…<p>

She blushed a little and released Luffy abruptly. Silly. That line of thinking is definitely made her uncomfortable, so she let Chopper scoop her out of Luffy's arms and deposit her gently on the table.

"What's the matter, Nami?" Chopper asked in his doctor voice, his clinical eyes picking out her sunken eyes and her slight inclination to hold her stomach, as if in nausea.

Nami glanced up at Luffy in the doorway and paused for a moment in hesitation. Luffy waved his hand at her to go ahead and she looked back at Chopper and repeated her symptoms for him, trying to act blasé and not make a big deal.

"That's serious! I'll have to run some tests!" Chopper said with a little bit of alarm, and Nami cringed with a glum expression, then glared at Luffy.

"This is your fault," she muttered to him darkly, then offered her arm out to Chopper as he approached her with a needle, looking nervously from the syringe and to her arm, wincing a little in anticipation.

He turned to glance at her with a scalpel in his hand, "Well, woman! Stop getting sick!" he muttered back to her, putting the scalpel down and picking up some artery clips and checking those out instead.

"Nami! Stop it! Luffy, leave those alone!" Chopper interrupted and ended any heated debate that would have started. He stuck a needle in her arm and muttered a quiet apology to her.

Luffy made a face and came over to stand next to her and watch Chopper draw blood. Her face was turned away from watching and tight with nerves. He flickered his eyes from the needle to her face and back to the needle. Then, feeling compelled to let her know that it was fine and she'd get better because he had total faith in Chopper, he reached his hand down and slipped his hand into her free one, weaving their fingers together and giving her a silly grin.

"Chopper will fix you up." He assured her, giving her a chaste kiss on her cheek and blowing a raspberry against her skin. She lifted her shoulder to push him away, even as a smile teased her lips. Their reindeer audience rolled his eyes at them, but continued to run his tests.

* * *

><p>AN:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	31. Chapter 31

~Chapter Thirty-One~

"_When my world is going crazy, you can turn it all around."_

Four days passed in a flurry of whatever they did on the ship. They would stop only at one more island in a couple of days, the perfect place to resupply before Redgrove because of obvious reasons like, gee, contaminated food and water. And of course, for one last hoopla before they had an EPIC battle.

Luffy was in the kitchen and he'd completely forgotten about Nami's morning illnesses. In fact, he wasn't really thinking about much because Sanji just slid a heaping plate of barbeque in front of him and he was attacking it with relish.

"Man! Sanji! This is SO GOOD!" he talked around a face full of meat, "I forgot how good your barbeque was!"

"I'm glad you approve," the cook replied calmly, "Just one more moment, Robin-chwan! I have your coffee almost to perfection!"

Luffy turned his head and saw that Robin was sitting on the other end of the bar with a book in front of her, "Oh my god! Robin! I didn't see you there!" he exclaimed, pulling a bone out of his mouth and tossing it onto the plate.

Sanji handed her a mug of coffee and she smiled and thanked him before turning to the captain, "Say, senchou," she mused, "Did Nami ever hear back about those tests that Chopper did? I am curious about her condition…"

"That's right! My sweet Nami has been so under the weather!" Sanji gushed, earning a raised brow from Luffy.

"I forgot about those! I'll go ask Chopper!" he declared himself done with his lunch and raced out of the kitchen at full speed. As soon as the door shut, Sanji sobered up and leaned over the counter to face Robin as she sipped her coffee.

"Do you suppose he has any idea?" she asked the cook, flipping a page in her book.

"Nope, I think you'd have to beat him over the head with the symptoms before he got a clue," he replied, lighting a cigarette and taking a drag, "Though, she didn't see it either…"

"It's easier to spot the obvious when you aren't directly involved," Robin said calmly, "Should be exciting though, when she shares the news."

"You think she's heard the results?"

"Definitely. She's been in the library for two days now."

He took a long drag and then sighed, "I can't wait to prepare her delicious and nutritious meals. How's your coffee?"

Robin smiled, "Delicious. Thank you."

* * *

><p>Luffy burst into the medical room and successfully startled the doctor into tumbling off the stool, "Hey! Chopper! Did you ever figure out what was wrong with Nami?" ever the one to get right to the point…<p>

The reindeer picked himself up and clambered back onto the stool, "Oh. Ya. The results came in two days ago. Congratulations!"

The captain blinked at him, "Thanks… did I win something?"

Chopper paled, "Nami… she hasn't told you yet?"

"No. That's why I'm asking you."

The doctor fidgeted in his chair, "I mean, she should probably tell you… but I guess I already spilled the beans now… Luffy, Nami's pregnant."

Silence. "That's great! Who's the dad!?"

More silence, "You, you moron. Nami is going to have your baby."

He blinked at Chopper for a solid four heartbeats before the news crashed down on him suddenly and forcefully. He reached out and gripped the doorframe hard and the reindeer made a squeak of dismay and switched to his heavy point to grab the captain's shoulder before he fell over, "Luffy! You okay?"

"Ya…" he replied. Holy shit. Nami… she was pregnant? Muddy images swam through his head, whatever he remembered from their one night stand. Impossible. She was pregnant from that one… drunken mistake? His favorite mistake thus far, but still. He was… he was going to be a father…?

He didn't know if he was terrified or pumped.

"Thanks, Chopper." He replied finally and pulled himself together enough to walk out of the medical room. His feet carried him up to the library where he knew she was and he slammed into the room, the door bouncing off the wall, his nerves jittery and tingling and his stomach tight with anxiety.

"Luffy!" she exclaimed, jumping in her chair. Her inkwell fell over.

He stared at her for a whole minute in silence before he stormed over to her and bodily hauled her up and squeezed her in a tight hug, her feet off the floor, her chair tipping over and crashing to the floor. But he didn't care.

* * *

><p>Nami stared down at the map in front of her, in a daze. She was still digesting the news, and no matter how hard she tried, her focus was weak, at best.<p>

She opened her inkwell, dipped in a pen, and stared down at the map with as much concentration as she could muster. She just needed to lose herself in her work! That's all.

That was right about when the door suddenly slammed open, making her jump and drop her pen on the desk by accident, which caused the inkwell to tip over. Nami glanced down, then back up at Luffy with an expression that was a mix of angry and shocked, her mouth hanging open.

"Luffy!" damn it! If she had a beri for every fucking map that was ruined because of him…

He stormed right up to her, reached down, and bodily hauled her off her feet and into a fierce hug. She let out surprised squeak and froze, then squirmed at the tightness of his grip. She glanced at her ruined map and let out a growl of frustration, but her arms were trapped by her side and all she could do was wiggle harder and pull her head back to try and see his face.

"Oi! Luffy, what are you doing? You spilled my ink!" she exclaimed at him, even though her face was red from the exquisite feeling of Luffy's hard body pressed tightly to hers. The feel of his arms wrapped around her was immensely comforting; if not a little disconcerting in the way he was acting.

"Is this a booty call? Because, I swear, I am so not in the mood…" she muttered, twisting her wrists and forearms around enough to brace herself on his hips, a shiver of awareness traveling up from her fingers.

* * *

><p>She wriggled against him and he held fast to her, just... needing to hold onto her, to feel her body against his, solid and stable. He was still digesting his reaction to the news. Pregnant. Baby. He couldn't decide if he was excited or not. In a way, he was because it was another adventure. His mind jumped to what it would be like to have a little mini Luffy, but smarter like Nami, a navigator like her.<p>

Sounded like epicness.

"Not a booty call," he chuckled at her, his face in the crook of her neck. Though, he was never opposed to a booty call...

He released her, putting her back on her feet and promptly dropping to his knees in front of her. She was dressed in rolled up jeans and a bikini top, which meant that the whole expanse of her tight- for now -stomach was bare. He pressed his face into her skin.

"Hellooooo baby!" he spoke, his voice muffled, his lips brushing her skin as he spoke, "This is your captain speaking. We are going to have some GREAT adventures so hurry up and grow."

* * *

><p>She could feel heat working its way up into her cheeks as he chuckled against her neck, and she stopped wiggling, too focused on the way his arms felt wrapped around her, the warmth of him seeping into her skin, the smell of him filtering through her senses.<p>

He... made everything better. He didn't even know why she was upset, didn't even know that he was about to be a father, and he was still making her feel better, just with a hug.

He put her down on her feet and dropped to his knees in front of her, making her mouth pop open in surprise as she frowned down at him in confusion, "Wha-" she started, then stopped as his words slowly absorbed into her shocked brain.

He...knew…?

She went stock still, too damned shocked to do anything but stare at him as he talked against her belly. She was at one time angry-someone had spilled the beans on her-and overwhelmingly happy. He just accepted it, without even a blink.

He was talking to her baby, no, _their_ baby, and it made her eyes sting with sudden tears of relief and happiness. She had been terrified that he was going to be upset, that he would reject the news…

She blinked away the tears and reached down to slowly, hesitantly, funnel her fingers through his hair. A smile tugged at her lips. "You're not... you're happy, about the baby?" she finally managed to choke out, her eyes riveted to the sight of his lips brushing against her flat belly as he spoke. Heat pooled in her abdomen, and she shifted slightly in discomfort. Somehow, it felt inappropriate to be getting lustful when they were talking about a baby on the way.

* * *

><p>Luffy was missing the fear gene in general. Rarely did he ever feel the degree of fear that bordered on terrified; terrified to the point where one would cry and shake and generally slip into a state of hysteria. He just didn't, there was nothing in life that was deemed that scary for him, not even the threat on his own well being.<p>

However, he wasn't immune to feeling short bursts of panic, the kind of panic that had your heart racing and your body flushing as your core temperature notched a few degrees higher. It was an involuntary reaction and his normal behavior towards this feeling was to laugh it off because it seemed silly to him that he should feel panic over anything. Nothing was worth panicking over because everything could be fixed or worked through.

So, as Nami delved her fingers through his hair and her voice was thick with emotion when she asked him if he was upset over the baby, he felt a short spike of panic over the topic. Sure, it was exciting, but he'd been raised by his grandfather. He didn't have much of a relationship with his father. And Garp… was not an easy man to live with. And a huge majority of his childhood was spent living with bandits and running around the woods with Ace. Needless to say, Luffy wasn't swimming with role models on what he was going to have to do to be a decent dad.

His grin was ear to ear and he laughed against her stomach and tipped his head back to look up at her, "Are you kidding?" he chuckled, "This is going to be great!" he wrapped his arms around her hips and leaned back, falling to the floor and taking her with him. He landed hard but she was pillowed against him and his entertainment continued at the awkwardness in which their limbs were situated. He solved it by flipping them over and bracing himself over her.

The seriousness of the situation was making him feel giddy, his adrenaline pumping through him. His outlet? Play time.

He leaned down and blew a raspberry against her neck, a big loud one and pinned her down with his legs so that he could pinch her sides where he knew that she was incredibly ticklish. The thrashing and screaming was inevitable and he nimbly dodged her, laughing as he tortured her.

"Luffy!" she screamed breathlessly, "Stop! Stop! I can't… breathe!" the severity of her command was diminished exponentially by the fact that she was crying with laughter.

He laughed and blew another raspberry against her stomach. She managed to free one of her hands and thwapped him hard on the top of his head, repeatedly. It didn't hurt.

"Stop!" she cried, "You're so gross."

But he loved the sound of her laughter and it wasn't until she yanked hard on his hair that he stopped and climbed over her, his knees on either side of her hips. She grabbed his face with both her hands and his wide grin faltered just a little at the seriousness of her expression.

"For real, Luffy. What are you thinking right now?" she asked.

Before he could formulate a reply, the door to the library burst open and Luffy snapped his head up to meet Zoro's eyes. The swordsman opened his mouth to say something before his eyes darted over the very damning position that Luffy and Nami were in and the swordsman's face exploded with color.

"Sorry…" he muttered, "But, Nami, you've got to see this! There's a tornado in the middle of the ocean and we are heading right for it!" a gust of wind blew through the door, cool air that ruffled the papers in the room and shook the line of maps she had hanging up to dry.

* * *

><p>AN:

I want to post more, but homework calls. I'll try not to be so long next time! :)

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	32. Chapter 32

~Chapter Thirty-Two~

A tornado on the ocean?

Nami's head snapped up and her eyes hardened as her brain already started sorting through the workings of the weather and the types of anomalies that caused such things. It sounded like a waterspout.

"Move, Luffy," She pushed him off of her and was on her feet within seconds, grabbing her scope and shoving Zoro out of the way as she shot out of the library. The sky was the color of a deep bruise, cloud patterns swirling. The wind whipped at her hair. Down on the deck, Chopper was running around, screaming while Usopp's voice had that hurried, panicked inflection to it even as he tried to catch the little reindeer.

"Cool!" Luffy's voice sounded behind her.

"This is bad…" she muttered, and Tikka, who'd accompanied Zoro, glanced back at her as she held on to the railing.

"Bad?!" the girl shrieked, pointing to the sky. "It's a tornado in the ocean!" The Sunny rocked dangerously and Tikka lurched to the side. Zoro caught her.

"It's called a Waterspout," Nami shot back, and lifted the glass to her eyes, her other hand gripping the rail. "Normally, they're not as powerful as tornadoes, but this one is stemming from a mesocyclone, a vortex of air. So technically, it's a tornadic waterspout rather than the traditional waterspout, and therefore more powerful."

Nami hurried for the stairs, and rushed to the mast, where a bunch of rope was coiled and hung over pegs. She grabbed several of them, and grabbed Chopper by his back pack straps and swiftly tied the rope around his waist, the other end secure to the mast.

"Everyone!" she announced in her no-nonsense navigator voice. "Tie yourselves down! You don't want to be pulled up into the air... or into the ocean."

"Into the air?!" Chopper wailed, and suddenly clung to the mast with all of his strength.

"Ow! I think I'm too heavy tha-"

"Even you, Franky," she interrupted with a glare that had the guy putting his hands up in surrender and a sweet and innocent smile on his face. She turned back to the second deck and tossed three ends up to Tikka, Zoro, and Luffy. "Put these on, NOW," she demanded, her eyes steely.

Everyone jumped into action. Nami's had a no-nonsense air of authority that even the captain obeyed and everyone raced around to follow her orders and tie each other to the ship. Zoro immediately secured Tikka, and Sanji and Luffy ran around like headless chickens to try and tie everything down to the ship. Franky hoisted Robin and wound a rope around her hips.

"Luffy! The tangerine trees!" Sanji shouted, grabbing a length of rope.

"Right!" the captain jumped up to join the cook and started to secure the trees down, orange fruit shaking loose as the ship rocked precariously, rolling across the deck.

Nami grabbed life jackets and was strapping one to the little reindeer when the Sunny pitched sideways again and she tumbled across the deck. Her back hit the railing and she gasped.

"Ow! Hang on tight!" Franky called. He muscled the helm, his big robot hands tied to it.

Usopp appeared and helped her to her feet. They both stumbled as the ship rocked precariously.

"Quick!" she hollered over the wind, "Tie yourself down!" she wound the rope around his waist and shoulders expertly.

"What about you?" he asked.

"Don't worry! I have to make sure that everyone…"

"Nami!" a voice cut through the wind, barely, and she stopped and turned to look up on the deck to see Tikka pointing frantically.

She followed the girl's finger and gasped. A massive wave, taller than the Sunny, was pummeling towards them like a bad omen. She made a mad grab for her rope, but the ship rocked and she missed. Time slowed as the wave crashed over the ship, over her and Usopp, sucking them towards the edge. She tried to keep her hold on the rope, but it slipped through her fingers like a snake. Usopp grabbed her hands and wrists, tumbling with her until they both slammed into the rail. The force of the wave didn't stop them though and up and over they went. He clung to her hands, but as his rope promptly snapped him back, the force slipped her wet hands out of his grip. She was swept over, and for a full second hung in midair, water droplets hanging around her, as her eyes met Luffy's squarely.

Then…

She was swept away into the waves as the torrent water engulfed her body. She was instantly sucked down and sharply to the right from the currents, and she snapped her head up and tried to see the surface, but everything was churning around her, she couldn't tell what was up, what was down…

* * *

><p>"NAMI!"<p>

A shriek rang through the air as Tikka screeched at the top of her lungs. Luffy's eyes flashed up just in time as a massive wave slammed into the ship. Sanji grabbed him by the back of his shirt as the water surged over the lower deck and they stumbled and fell. Another screamed raked the air like nails on a chalkboard and Luffy felt something akin to panic as he managed to get his bearings and snapped his head up.

Nami and Usopp were tumbling like ragweed across the deck. They slammed into the railing. Usopp's harness snapped him back. Nami kept going. Luffy's heart jumped into his throat and his stomach dropped out of his body as her eyes met his for a full heartbeat while she was suspended in the air before the gray waters swallowed her up like hungry hands.

All rational thought blew through him. It didn't matter or even occur to him that water and storms were not friendly with him or that he should tie himself down because he was better alive than dead to everyone. All he could think, could process, was that Nami, his navigator, his… whatever they were romantically and the mother of his future baby, just went over the ship in a violent, unforgiving storm. And that he couldn't get her if she was under the water.

"NAMIIII!" he hollered at the top of his lungs, launching himself down to the deck to lean over the railing. The water churned and swirled viciously. Panic had his heart racing and his breath coming in short pants, "ZORO!" he turned just in time to see his master swordsman whip his boots off and dive into the water, a rope around his hips and the other end tossed at Luffy. He managed to grab it and wrap it around his wrist. The rope was short, but it didn't matter; he would stretch and stretch and stretch if that's what it took.

Seconds turned into lifetimes; the rope dragged further and further out, his arm elongating more and more. The whole ship waited with bated breath; even the storm seemed like it was awaiting the outcome. Finally, the top of Zoro's green hair surfaced, along with Nami's coppery waves. Luffy let out of the breath he was holding, only to hold another when her head clearly lolled against Zoro, unconscious. He hauled them in with everything he had, skipping them over the waves like a waver until he could pull them both up onto the deck, soaking wet and shivering. The wind whipped violently at clothes and sails.

Luffy took Nami from the swordsman, just as Zoro's legs wobbled and he sank to the deck, shivering, his clothes soaked and sticking to him.

"ZORO!" Tikka shrieked and made like she was trying to untie her harness.

"Do NOT come down here, woman!" he shouted back to her, his tone so fierce that she actually obeyed him.

Chopper, still roped to the mast, rushed over and dug a stethoscope out of his pack. He plugged them into his ears and leaned over Nami.

"Zoro, you okay?" Chopper asked as an afterthought over his shoulder, listening to her lungs and heart, "She's swallowed some water…"

"I'm good," the swordsman chattered. Tikka was yelling at him and trying to undo the knot he'd made in her rope.

"Ow! Hang on!" Franky hollered.

Once again, the ship pitched back and forth violently, knocking Chopper, Luffy and Zoro over.

"She's going to need mouth-to-mouth resuscitation," the doctor told Luffy, "Lay her down here,"

"What does that mean? Is she gonna be okay?" he effectively kept the panic out of his voice, though the reindeer gave him a knowing look, "And…"

"She'll be fine, the baby will be fine," Chopper reassured him, though the comment earned a look from Zoro with brows up, "Back up. I need to do CPR."

Reluctant to let her go, but trusting Chopper completely, Luffy slid back a bit to give the doctor some room to work. Chopper pinched her nose and started pumping breath into her body. In the meantime, Zoro, shaking like mad, wound a rope around Luffy's waist and clumsily tied his own to the railing. Luffy hardly noticed, watching Chopper, waiting… waiting…

After what felt like a lifetime, Chopper stopped and she coughed and sputtered, water coming up. Luffy slipped a hand behind her back and helped her sit up. His heart started racing and it was then that he realized that it all but stopped for the past three minutes while he waited to see if she was going to be alright.

"Ow! Brace yourselves!" Franky called. The worst wasn't even over.

* * *

><p>AN:

I KNOW! Another chapter! Four chapters in two days? What the hell? It must be too hot in my neck of the woods to do work… Cheers.

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	33. Chapter 33

~Chapter Thirty-Three~

The waterspout loomed over the Sunny-Go. Usopp screamed. The ship tipped and tilted dangerously as Franky muscled the helm hard to the right, attempting to make it around the cyclone of water. The air around them rushed and spun, pushing and pulling violently. Chopper screamed as the wind started to pull him off the deck. Zoro grabbed him and held him down. Luffy pulled Nami's shivering body into him, gritting his teeth against the wind, rain and water.

It felt like days before they passed through the worst of the storm. Rain and freezing wind still pelted them from every direction, but the sea was calmer. The Sunny still rocked, but it didn't seem in danger of capsizing anymore.

"Ow! Everyone get inside! This rain is gonna keep coming!" Franky called.

Everyone started untying themselves and each other and bolted for the warmth and dryness of the galley. Sanji lit a smoke and started making hot drinks and meals for everyone. Usopp disappeared and came back with towels. He handed a bunch to Luffy and Nami and then to Zoro and Tikka. Tikka wrapped Zoro in a couple and rubbed his arms and hair, tsking at him. Luffy did the same to Nami, minus the tsking. She was leaning heavily against him, silently refusing to occupy her own chair and instead sharing his. She was shivering and shaking like mad.

"Th-th-the cold water c-c-c-current... a-a-arctic cold, hit the warm wat-t-t-er... made the cyclone... so c-c-c-cold…" she tried to speak, and her voice was hoarse and low, and her chattering teeth made it difficult to speak.

"Yeah, that water was WAY colder than it was when Tikka and I went swimming earlier... like, Chopper's island cold…" Zoro put in as he pulled the towels tighter around him and shuddered, before pulling it all in like a man and forcing the trembles to stop. Just like that. Tikka send him a look that was half worried, half-amused at his self-imposed manly restrictions.

Chopper cast them both worried glances, "Try to warm up gradually. If you don't feel better in a few minutes, I'll have you draw up a bath."

"You'll feel better after a warm drink," Sanji said, putting steamy mugs on the tables, "Ladies first, you brutes."

Robin joined them then. She grabbed a few towels off the tables and an umbrella from the vase near the door. She smiled at everyone and made some quick conversation with Sanji before taking two mugs and breezing out, just as noninvasively as she came in.

Up on deck near the helm, Robin settled into a chair, wrapped in towels and blankets. She had a raincoat on too, to keep most of her dry as the rain continued to drizzle. At the helm, Franky had a towel over his hair and two delicate hands holding an umbrella over his head while his were steering.

"You're gonna get super wet out here," he said.

She smiled and sipped her coffee, not saying anything, but making no move to leave either.

* * *

><p>Back in the galley, Chopper checked Nami's core temperature and made a face. She hadn't stopped shivering for fifteen minutes.<p>

"Touch your first finger to your thumb," the doctor asked her, switching to his heavy point and demonstrating, "Like this."

She slowly unwound her hand from the towels and attempted it. Her hands were shaking so badly and her fingernails were turning blue. She couldn't do it.

"Alright. Warm bath. Now. Luffy, take her to the medical ward. Her temperature isn't rising." Chopper turned to Zoro, "Go change into something dry. Maybe a shower too."

"I'm f-f-fine." Zoro retorted. Tikka gave him a stern look then leaned in and whispered something in his ear, to which the swordsman said, "Right. Doctor's orders." And he and Tikka left the galley.

"Right!" Luffy agreed with a stern nod, putting on his serious face. He wrapped the towels more tightly around her and picked her right up, holding her tight to him, though, it didn't make much difference. He was soaked and freezing to the bone too; he probably wasn't making her any warmer.

Luffy stormed out of the kitchen and barged into the medical office, cradling Nami's stuttering form. She needed to get warm. Chopper said a bath would do. He looked into the bathroom. It was only a shower…

Wait! He'd heard something about taking off the wet clothes! That had to be it! Chopper wanted her out of her cold clothes and in a hot shower. The clothes were making her cold!

"Right! Nami! I'm gonna take care of you, promise!" he told her. He sat her down on the floor and took the towel away from her. Her skin was pale and nearly translucent from chill. His movements somewhat frantic, he untied her bikini top and peeled her jeans off her, his mind on a one-track motive; get Nami warm.

"Okay!" once she was out of her clothes, he wrapped her back in the towel and wrapped a few more around her – purely precautionary – and leaned in to start the shower. He flipped his hand under the water a couple of times, testing the warmth and decided on a lukewarm temperature. Something told him that if it was too hot, that would be really bad for her.

"Alright, Nami! You ready?" he hauled her to her feet and immediately, she leaned against him solidly, her knees trembling so badly that it didn't look like she could stand by herself, "Can you stand?" he asked her, "Never mind, I'll help you." The towels fell away from her as he slid open the shower stall door and half-carried, half-guided her under the hot water. He shut them in, steam rising and curling around the ceiling. His clothes, already wet from the storm, clung to his skin under the heat of the spray.

* * *

><p>The cold made all of her reaction times much slower, so she didn't even bother protesting as Luffy scooped her up and hauled her off towards the doctor's office. She was focusing on trying to stop chattering, closing her eyes and being lulled by the heat coming off of Luffy's body and the sway of his arms as he walked with her.<p>

His words, as he burst into the bathroom attached to the doctor's office, had her eyes opening as she glanced up at him, warmed from the inside by his care. He was a silly and often clueless man, but sometimes... he made butterflies go crazy in her stomach.

Those butterflies quickly caught on fire and her stomach clenched in surprise when he suddenly stripped her of her clothing. Her mouth popped open and she tried to protest, but he'd already dumped more towels on her, effectively covering her up again as he busied himself with the shower.

She could only stare at him with a mixed expression of annoyance and gratitude. He was so damn focused on his task of warming her up, it was... endearing. But it was also frustrating. He pulled the towels off of her, leaving her in full nude, as he dragged her into the shower with him, and he didn't even notice.

Not that she was usually so vain, but hey, she had a rockin' body and he hadn't even noticed it, pressed up against his with only his wet shirt and pants between them. "Luffy, I c-c-can do it m-m-myself," she retorted, blushing madly. He may not be aware of her yet, but she was definitely aware of him in a shower with her naked.

Her fingers curled against his shirt for a moment before she turned her face up into the warm spray, and finally felt her muscles begin to loosen and relax, and stop their shuddering. When she felt like her legs had warmed up enough to support herself, she lightly pushed off of him and used the wall to support herself, the water trailing down her pale body, sluicing through her red hair and plastering the silken strands over her breasts and down her back.

Instinctively, in a way she had never been aware of before, one hand fluttered to her stomach, over her abdomen, hoping that her little dip into the sea hadn't damaged the little sea monkey at all. Her eyes flickered up to Luffy, looking through the wet strands of her hair.

* * *

><p>After a few minutes of the water beating down on them and steam fogging the glass, she started to relax and pushed away from him to lean against the wall of the shower. She tucked a strand of hair away from her face, smoothing it back before trailing that hand down to her stomach and laying her palm against her abdomen. He watched her, watched that hand and it occurred to him in a flush that that was where she had a bun in the oven.<p>

His bun, to be precise.

He reached out and laid his hand over hers, the action impulsive and it took his mind another minute to catch up with him, linking the pieces together. Bun in the oven made him think about how it got there… which made him think about sex… which made him think about her…

His eyes jumped over her and it hit him like a brick in the face that he had actively and willingly stripped her of all her clothing and tossed her naked in a shower with him and that the two of them were in a hot and steaming situation, literally. His eyes gave him away first, darkening from gray to a deep charcoal as they flitted over her before pursing his lips together and making a face like he didn't know what he was supposed to do with the knowledge that he suddenly just acquired.

"Do you feel okay?" he asked around the tightness in his throat. He swallowed around it, "Should I help you with something?"

* * *

><p>Too tired and still cold from her encounter with the deep blue only minutes earlier, Nami could only watch, half amused, half exasperated, as Luffy connected the dots predictably. He became aware of her hand over her abdomen first, and that made her flush in awareness and drop her hand to her side.<p>

His eyes darkened with lust as he became aware of her state of dress, and it only made her body heat hitch up another notch. Which, she supposed, was good, considering she'd almost gotten hypothermia.

Excitement and anticipation fluttered through her stomach, but it was right about then that his face shifted almost comically. She sighed out loud at him, but reminded herself that she couldn't be too frustrated with him for being thoughtful of her condition, could she? Even if she wanted him to get with the program here and start making some moves. It wasn't often she found herself in a shower with her captain – never actually – so she might as well take advantage of it.

Then again, who was she kidding? This was Luffy, the most clueless man in the ocean. She better get used to doing most of the work. So as she rolled her eyes and sent him a droll, somewhat heated expression, Nami pushed off from the wall and planted both of her hands on his chest. Her fingers found the buttons securing the red vest closed, and started to work them free, slowly.

"No," she replied to him, her eyes flickering up from watching her hands to gaze at him with her newly kindle lust clear on her expression. "I'm not warm enough yet, Luffy... I need to get hotter," as she murmured her words to him, she tilted her head forward and to the side until her lips were practically speaking the words right against the skin of his neck.

Her fingers finally pried free two of the buttons, enough that his chest was visible through the gap in the shirt. Heaving a soft sigh, she leaned against him, her bare breasts mashing up against the exposed flesh of his chest, and planted her lips solidly on his for a kiss while she was at it.

A/N:

_Summer school is done! More time for chapter editing!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	34. Chapter 34

~Chapter Thirty-Four~

_*** LIME WARNING***_

_If you don't like it, you're lying._

"I need to get hotter…"

She unbuttoned his shirt and pressed against him, skin to skin, the contact made slick from the water. It jacked his blood pressure and his heart skipped a beat. She kissed him and everything inside his body felt like it was jumping around. His hands settled on her bare hips. Hotter? If she was starting to feel anything like he was starting to feel, like his stomach and blood just caught flame, then she was going to get really hot, really quick.

"Is this… a good idea…?" he asked her, but his voice was at odds with his actions as he crowded her back against the wall of the shower and peeled his shirt off for her and tossed both that and his hat over the top of the shower glass. He didn't really care if this was a good idea or not, actually. She was completely irresistible. He tunneled his hand through her wet hair and tipped her head back to kiss her again, hard, passionate, his other hand hooking behind her knee and lifting her leg up to his hips.

Something about the combination of the water and the heat and the feel of her skin against his was intoxicating and turning him on.

In truth, Nami didn't really know anything about having a baby. However, she was pretty sure it was the size of a sea monkey right now and not really in danger of being hurt by a heated exchange.

So she didn't try to stop him at all when he turned the tables on her and pushed her back up against the glass wall and kissed her senseless. His hands tunneled through her hair and she arched her back, instinctively, pressing her wet body up against his and creating a wonderful friction as he hoisted her leg up by the knee.

"I think it's fine, Luffy," she murmured to him with a grin on her face. "Besides, this will definitely warm me up, and that's what Chopper said to do, right?" Her voice was fairly breathless from the excitement coursing through her veins.

As he hoisted her up, he gave her the leverage she needed to hook her legs around his waist, her freed hands going to the fastenings of his pants as her head fell back, exposing her white throat. She performed her actions blind, expertly popping the button, pulling down the fly, and sliding her hand between his tight abs and the material to wrap her fingers around his shaft.

She bit her lip as a sly smirk of anticipation flashed over her features. She opened her eyes and looked up at Luffy, her lashes spiky and her eyes bright from the hot shower, and reached up with one hand to pull him down for a hot kiss, squirming her body up his in wanton need.

Oh, he was SO digging her train of thought.

"Ya, just following doctor's orders…" he agreed with a wily smirk that was seriously compromised by the breathlessness quality of his voice and the molten heat in his eyes. She jumped up, successfully wrapping her legs around his hips and he immediately dipped an arm to support her ass. The lack of friction between them was heady and erotic and had his blood pounding hard. All he could think about was Nami and her sexy body against his and the feel of her mouth over his skin…

He felt her hand slip between them and his lungs caught in anticipation as she worked the button/fly free, dropping his shorts low on his hips and dipping her hand beneath the material. The breath he was holding came out in a stuttered gasp of her name as she wrapped her fingers around him and worked him over. With his free hand, he blindly tugged his shorts down and kicked them around the shower floor off his ankles and the knowledge that he was completely naked with Nami in the shower tightened all his nerve endings. The last time they were entirely naked together, he didn't remember half of the things they did.

Damned if he wasn't aware of what they were doing now. It was all that he could think about. His whole world was consumed by her, the feel, the taste, the smell, like sex and tangerines and money. He wanted, no, needed everything from her right now. He needed to rock her world and blow her mind more than he needed oxygen at this point. Their one drunken, hazy encounter together had burned him more than he cared to admit and it was a constant preoccupation for him. He needed… he needed a "do-over".

The timing felt optimal.

He tore his mouth away from hers and chased water droplets down her neck and collarbone until he could capture a breast in his mouth and ravish her desperately. He coerced her to unhook a leg from his hips and once her toes touched the shower floor, he dropped to his knees, his mouth continuing to move over her, tasting the water the water sluicing over her ribs, her stomach, her hips…

Her other foot braced against his shoulder, he tickled her toes playfully before ducking his head and capturing her sex in his mouth, tasting her, one hand pinning her hips. God, she tasted incredible; the shower floor was unforgiving on his knees, but he settled down like a man that didn't plan on getting up for a while…

Nami was really getting into it when he tapped her foot and guided her back down to the ground. Her brow furrowed in confusion, and she opened her mouth to question what he was doing, when suddenly he dropped to his knees in front of her, and her eyes popped open in surprise.

"Luffy, what are you-" her words were abruptly cut off when he hoisted her leg up to prop on his shoulder and claimed her core with his mouth. She jerked in reaction, heat flushing up her spine, but he had a hand planted solidly on her hip to keep her from squirming too much.

Which was a good thing, because what Luffy did best was feast, and he was certainly feasting on her now. Her head fell back against the glass and a moan was ripped from her lips. One hand braced herself on the glass, the other hand fell to his head, tunneling her fingers through his wet hair as she half guided him, half hung on for dear life.

His amazing tongue was also made out of rubber, since he was a rubber man, and her world would never be the same after the shocks he sent rocketing through her body. Wave after wave of heat and sizzling pleasure rippled through her body, so much so fast that she barely lasted five minutes before her whole body tensed.

"Luffy, I-" she tried to warn him, but her words came out in a moan as her orgasm hit her hard. She arched back against the glass, her fingers clutching at the slick surface as her hips jerked, kept in place only by his restraining hand. She let out a cry of pleasure, pushing him away with the hand in his hair as the sensation became too much, overwhelmingly pleasurable to the point of pain.

He had about ten seconds of forewarning before she fragmented and her body twitched and trembled, his name tumbling from her lips, sending shocks through him just hearing it. He could hear her fingernails scratching against the glass as she desperately tried to cling to something and her hand in his hair tugged hard and it felt surprisingly erotic before she shoved him away and collapsed against the wall.

He stood and braced his arms against the wall on either side of her head, giving her a grin as she flashed her eyes up to his and mirrored the wickedness with her own little smirk. It sent his heart plummeting to the floor just before she walked her fingertips down his stomach and wrapped her hand around him once again.

"Your turn…" she whispered, dropping to her knees and his adrenaline spiked in anticipation. He leaned his weight against his forearms braced against the wall as she took him into her hot mouth and the sensation was wild, making previous time she did this pale in comparison. He'd been so drunk that time that he couldn't think straight but now… god, he was hyper aware of everything she did to him, from the feel of her fingers to the hot pull of her lips, the swirl of her tongue. It took an incredible amount of self-restraint to not thrust his hips and force her to take him in deeper. Somewhere in his lust haze mind, he figured she might not overly enjoy that…

His breath came in short gasps as she used her hands and mouth to do that thing to him where she stretched him out, just slightly, but god, was it enough to send tingles right up and down his spine, "Nami…" he warned her, but she was relentless on him and did it again and he exploded, his hands dropped to the top of her head so he could thread his fingers through her coppery locks, needing something to hold onto while he rode out his orgasm.

But he wasn't done with her; in fact, if anything, all it did was make him want more from her. He hauled her to her feet and pinned her against the glass with his body, creating a delectable lack of friction between them, the water still cascading over them. He kissed her senseless, sucking her full lower lip while his hand came up to cup her breast and thumb over the perked peak. He was insatiable; he wanted to ravish her completely. He grabbed her knee and pulled her leg up to his hip again; this time though, there wasn't any clothing to separate them and he couldn't stifle the groan as the head of his cock brushed against her core.

"God, Nami…" he said raggedly, "Let's fuck…"

A/N:

_I've received some comments about Luffy's character. Some folks are concerned that he is getting further and further out of character. And it's very true that Luffy does have a particular manner of speaking and acting that shapes who he is. However, in my defense, there are a few factors at work here that make him "seem" like he's OOC: _

_1) Much of Luffy's character is visual by the nature of the genre. Anime/Manga are heavily image-based. In pure writing, it's difficult to display his variety of physical tendencies i.e faces and gestures and sounds._

_2) Again, by the nature of the Anime/Manga genre, we as readers don't get a lot of the "internal" workings of his brain like we do in other books. I have to infer a lot when I write his character._

_3) Any good writer worth their ink and pen knows that characters grow and change over time. This is a situation that Luffy has never encountered before: love, love that he himself is feeling. As a result, he is growing and maturing in a way I believe to be suitable for his character._

_And lastly, 4) Cut me some slack. I'm not Oda here, these aren't my characters. It's difficult to get into the head of a character that's not yours, let alone someone as dimwitted as Luffy can be._

_As always: Cheers! Happy reading! _

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	35. Chapter 35

~Chapter Thirty-Five~

"_Trying to make it work, but man these times are hard. So we're gonna start by drinking on cheap bottles of wine, shit talking up all night, saying things we haven't for a while. We're smiling but we're close tears, even after all these years… we just now got the feeling that we're meeting for the first time…"~The Script_

Nami smirked with satisfaction when she felt him tense up and hold on to her to ride out the orgasm. Surprisingly, it turned her on, enflamed her, to see his muscles corded with tension, his expression harsh. It was such a different side to him.

So she grinned when he pinned her back up against the glass wall, arching her back suggestively as he kissed her, enjoying the sensation of skin on skin contact with him, her nerves already sensitive and hyper-aware of him.

She squirmed and rubbed herself against him, firing them both up more, the thick swell of his shaft rubbing against her hips and belly, her own body wet with desire.

"Luffy…" she murmured between kisses, her hands coming up to grasp his hip with one and rest her palm against his chest with the other. Right about then, he lifted her leg, and his shaft, still hard, brushed against her core and made her take a sharp intake of breath.

"Let's fuck," he said raggedly, and she instantly stiffened. That… that seemed like a bad idea.

"Luffy, I don't…" she said hesitantly, pushing back against the glass and moving further from him.

She'd slept with him, yes, but it had been in the throes of drunken passion and pending disaster. But now… Well, she wasn't quite convinced that Luffy understood what having a baby meant, and how it could potentially make him choose between being King of the Pirates or not. He would never give up his dream and… She couldn't quite give that much of herself to him, not when so much was still uncertain…

"I can't, Luffy," she told him, lightly pushing him back. "I'm sorry, I just... sorry." she glanced up at him, shook her head, and beat a hasty retreat, pushing out of the shower, grabbing a large towel and her clothes, and leaving the bathroom and doctors office. She didn't stop, not even when Franky spied her in a towel and made a loud wolfwhistle on deck.

She made it to her room, shut and locked the door, then hurried to dry off and get dressed, thanking her lucky stars that Robin and Tikka were still absent. She didn't need them seeing her in a hot mess like this.

When she was finally clean, dry, and dressed, she only had energy left to crawl into her bed and drift to sleep.

She couldn't have cooled him down any faster even if she'd tossed his ass in the ocean. Just that one phrased snuffed out the fire that was raging through him. He didn't even have a second to react to her before she ducked out around him and darted out of the shower, snatching her clothes and a towel and leaving him standing there under the steamy spray of water.

What… just… happened…?

He slammed the spray knob off and seized his shorts off the shower floor, wrung them out and pulled them up his hips haphazardly. Still dripping, he stormed out of the medical office and onto the deck, spinning in a circle to see where she went. Most likely either her room or her mapping room.

"Ow! Senchou! I can tell what you and Nami were up to!" Franky whistled, causing Luffy to snap his head up and give him a dark look that had the shipwright chuckling.

"Where'd she go?" Luffy asked.

"Her room," Franky pointed and Luffy took off like a shot, not even bothering with the stairs and gum gum-ing his way up to her door. He had one hand on the door knob, poised to barge in there and ask her what the hell her little dash was about when a thought occurred to him. Nami… she remembered everything from the last time they did the deed. He… didn't. What if… what if something happened that night, something she didn't tell him, that was making her skittish? What if… he did something to her that she didn't like?

Had he hurt her?

He squeezed the knob hard then let it go and stormed away from the door, his thoughts black as he retraced his steps back to the medical office to gather the rest of his clothing and his hat. He didn't pass anyone on his way there or on his way back to his room, which was blessedly empty, everyone out enjoying the spurt of nice weather now that the storm had passed. He changed into something dry and hopped into his bunk, his head pillowed against his arm, eyes trained to the ceiling. He still had a lingering sensation drifting through him, arousal triggered by her and he felt like he took a hard hit to jewels and had a serious bruise going on. He rolled over to his stomach and stared at the wall ahead of him, his brain working hard as if he could recall memories that were buried by a drunken belligerence. It bothered him to the point where his heart raced at the idea that he'd done something that may have hurt her and he didn't remember. He wanted to go ask her, but some intuition told him he needed to leave her alone for a while.

Luffy made a face. Zoro didn't tell him that romance was going to be this hard…

For the next couple of days, she mostly avoided Luffy. She was surprised by how bad she felt, depriving him of sex. At the time, she'd felt justified, but then over the next few days, Luffy had seemed quiet and she thought maybe she'd hurt him, somehow.

So not only was she avoiding him because she'd left him high and dry, she was avoiding him because she felt bad about it too. Four days later, and Nami recognized the island coming into sight. It was one of the islands she'd briefly stopped at on her first initial voyage to the area, and sported a fancy casino.

She bit her lip as she stared across the ocean and at the small island in the distance. They were three days out from Watcher's island... and within range of his ability.

Her stomach knotted in the lingering fear she felt for that man. Luffy had given her a shred of hope for them, but it wasn't enough to keep her from shivering at the sight of her own shadow.

"There is a casino on this island, right?" Tikka asked, coming up behind Nami and settling against the railing of the Sunny.

"Yeah... I'm thinking maybe we should stop for the night... maybe check out the casino... we're really close now to Watcher's island, so it would be okay to delay us one more day," Nami said restlessly, glancing from the island and back to the ship, where Luffy and Usopp were tinkering on the deck together. Well, Luffy mostly annoyed Usopp, asking him about things.

Tikka was staring at her, and Nami was trying to act casual, but the girl was so damn perceptive…

"You should talk to him, about whatever is bothering you two. I heard that you stormed away from him in a towel," Tikka grinned and winked suggestively.

Nami gaped at her. "How-"

"I'm the gossip queen on this ship, Nami, my dear, so just live with it. Trust me, talk to him. Luffy is very simple," Tikka reached out, patted Nami's hand comfortingly, then went skipping off down the blank yelling about how they were going to a CASINO tonight.

"Really? That's awesome!" Chopper let out a whoop of excitement, and Franky grinned, swaying his hips and displaying his STAR arms.

"I'm SUPA good at casinos, you'll see!"

Robin just chuckled and put her book down, sitting nearby at her little garden. Nami rolled her eyes at the antics of her crew, and raised her voice to be heard above everyone's exclamations. "We'll need to restock the ship to its fullest as well, just in case we have to be at Watcher's island longer than we think," she told them, her eyes shifting to Luffy then quickly away, before she hurried to the girls' room to see what gowns she could wear.

Showering… was ruined for him.

Arms braced against the shower wall and his head ducked under the spray, all he could think about was Nami and the feel of her slick body against his and hearing her sexy whimpers in his head…

He sighed and made a face, his hand reaching blindly behind him to grab the soap. For the past four days, they'd done little talking – again – and he supposed that it was a joint effort at this point. She wasn't going out of her way to talk to him and he… he was actively giving her space. He felt terribly guilty for something he wasn't sure if he did or not and he felt like a totally jackass for being so… demanding about sex. If he could go back and repeat that moment, he would have waited for her to give him an a-okay. And frankly, she probably had a lot on her mind; he certainly did with this whole baby business and then the pending fight with Watcher.

He smashed some soap against his chest a little violently, his actions mirroring his thoughts. He was watching the last of the suds swirl down the drain when he heard the door to the bathroom open and snapped his head up to see the fuzzy outline of Zoro and his marimo hair.

"Hey, captain, we just docked at the island. You might wanna speed it up in there if you're coming with us to the casino," the swordsman said.

Luffy shut off the water and slid the door open to grab a towel, not at all abashed by the fact that Zoro was in the room with him, "Ya, that's cool. I was done anyway," showering was just not as entertaining these days…

"What's up with you, man? You've been quiet since you found out Nami's baking your offspring," Zoro continued, "You having some second thoughts?"

"No way," Luffy assured him, "That's kinda exciting, actually, a mini me that can sail the high seas as my co-captain? So awesome," he shook his hair out and wrapped the towel around his hips. He missed the eye roll that his swordsman gave him.

"Then what's been doing with you? You and Nami having some issues?"

Luffy wasn't one to make up stories or lie to his friends. It wasn't something he condoned normally, in fact, it never made sense to him. But… for this particular situation, he wasn't sure he wanted to talk to anyone about it, except maybe Nami, if he could just figure out what to say to her… "Nope, just been thinking about kicking this Watcher guy's ass," he told Zoro, shouldering by him to head into the boy's dorm for something to wear, "Hey, do I have to dress up for this shit?" he took a look at what Zoro was wearing; black on black with boots. No tie.

It seemed like Zoro decided to drop the subject, "Ya, like, black tie. Tikka said this is a pretty classy joint."

Luffy opened the closet and contemplated his selection. Very slim… he wasn't a big suit guy like Sanji. His wardrobe consisted of mostly cut offs and sleeveless shirts. He had some warmer stuff too. Oh! Wait! He did have a tux-like thing! He dug into the back of the closet and pulled out a hanger that had a black blazer and some matching black pants with them and a black tie too, "Will this do, you think?"

Zoro shrugged and nodded, "Sure. I mean, this is what I'm going with."

Luffy nodded in agreement, "Ya. I'll rock this."

A/N:

_:)_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	36. Chapter 36

~Chapter Thirty-Six~

"_I let it fall, my heart. And as it fell, you rose to claim it. It was dark and I was over you until you kissed my lips… and you saved me."~Adele_

Ten minutes later, he was ready to roll with a white button down tucked into some black pants that were a little more fitted than the shorts he typically wore and a black blazer jacket. He gave up on trying to do up the tie and had that hung around his neck. Everyone was milling around the deck, waiting for whoever was remaining. Luffy did a quick head count; Nami and Tikka were still missing.

"Why don't you go check on them?" Zoro said to him quietly, and Luffy looked over his shoulder and swore that his swordsman had a knowing look about him, "Maybe Nami can help you tie your tie."

"Ya. Alright." Luffy headed up to the girl's room. He could hear voices coming from inside and knocked quietly before opening the door.

Conversation stopped; Tikka glanced at him and then back at Nami and smirked, "I'll just… let you finish getting ready, 'k, Nami?" she brushed past Luffy and shut the door behind her, leaving them both alone in the room. The tension became thick nearly instantly; he hadn't been alone with her in days.

"Uh… could you help me tie this?" he asked her, clearing his throat and holding out the black tie.

Robin had finished getting ready in such a short amount of time that soon it was just Tikka and Nami. It helped that the raven-haired woman could have a million arms to do her hair and makeup simultaneously, while also fixing her dress. She was basically superwoman, as far as Nami was concerned.

Then again, Tikka was one of the best swordsmen in the world, so…

Nami sighed and stared at herself in the mirror. She was feeling rather blue and down on herself, lately. She felt fairly useless, even though she was a kick-ass navigator and could control local weather. Those things were just not as showy as Robin's and Tikka's abilities.

Plus, she was going to get fat.

Nami glanced down at her now-flat stomach, and moved a hand to hover over the spot a certain distance away, and wondered what it would feel like to not be able to see her own feet.

"You do not seem pleased about the potential belly there... you look glum, actually," Tikka surprised her from behind her, and Nami sat up with a blink and saw that Tikka was looking right over her shoulder.

"I'm just having a hormonal day, I guess…" Nami hedged, lifting the powder brush and finishing her makeup job. She then stood and performed a mini spin for Tikka's approval. "I can't read Luffy on what he feels about... us... and I'm worried that he doesn't understand what having a baby means. Plus, I'm going to get fat."

Tikka rolled her eyes and hurried forward to catch Nami by her arms and turn her to face the girl, zipping up the black dress the rest of the way. It was a cute little black dress kind of thing, exposing a good portion of her back and riding high on her hips to reveal a generous amount of smooth leg. The bodice was studded with black opal chips, making it shimmer darkly, and the laces which secured the bodice together in the front left a gap through which her cleavage was visible.

She supposed, all considered, that she looked bangin' tonight, even if she felt like shit.

"Nami, you're gorgeous, and you'll still be gorgeous with a baby bump. Baby bumps make women glow, and more attractive to men, trust me. It's natural for him to be attracted to you and want to protect you when you're preggers, so no sweat on that. As for the rest... I trust Luffy, so should you."

Nami opened her mouth to answer, but suddenly a knock had both of them shutting up tight. The door opened and Luffy came in, looking slightly uncomfortable but also surprisingly dashing in his all-black ensemble.

He held up a tie as Tikka abandoned her, and Nami could only sigh softly and reach up to gently take the silken material from him. "I'm glad that we can afford nice clothes like this now," she commented idly as she slid the tie around his neck and pulled the lapels of his shirt up, her fingers lightly brushing against his neck as she worked.

She kept her eyes down, away from his face, as she moved the tie over and around, extremely aware of the space between them, of the heat coming off his body. Avoiding him had only made her MORE aware of him.

He stepped into the room and she took the tie from him, adjusting the lapels of his shirt and slinging it around his neck to do him up. Her head was ducked down, avoiding his eyes and he took the moment to appreciate what she was wearing; a short black dress with no straps and ties down the front that showed off some serious boob. He couldn't help it as his mind wandered to how easy it would be to untie those straps…

He was hyper aware of her within his personal space; he could feel her body heat coming off her and his skin prickled when she brushed her fingers over his skin on accident. He could tell that she was feeling the tangible tenseness in the air too, from her quiet comment and the way she was holding herself; stiff, like she might dart at any time.

The words were right there on the tip of his tongue; he wanted to say something to her, ask her why she ran away from him earlier this week and what had freaked her out. He wanted to rub her belly and kiss her and whatever else would make her feel happy.

"I'm sorry," was all he could think of, everything he wanted to say blown right out of his head, whatever he'd practiced for hours just… evaporated, "I'm not sure what I did, but I've upset you and I'm sorry…"

The words he blurted out made her head snap up in surprise, her eyes going wide. It wasn't so much the apologizing; Luffy apologized all the time, even when he didn't mean it. What surprised her was the fact that he had noticed anything. Normally, Luffy was so clueless you'd have to hit him over the head to get him to notice anything at all.

Not only had he noticed that she was upset, she had a suspicion that he had done it all on his own. If he had spoken to Tikka, he would have known what to apologize for. If he had spoken to a guy, they wouldn't have told him to apologize-the crew was full of prideful men who thought they did nothing wrong.

So Luffy had been paying attention to her. Hope kindled in her chest. If he was paying this much attention to her when he was normally so clueless…

"Luffy, you didn't do anything wrong," she told him quietly, looking back down at his tie as she finished the knot up and then lightly pumped the knot up the tie and into place nestled in the lapels.

Her hands smoothed the tie down and then splayed out over his chest, lightly resting over where his heart thudded against the walls of his chest. He had such a strong-beating heart.

"I'm upset... well... let me put it this way. You do realize that having a baby is dangerous, right? Not only that, the baby is going to be very fragile... it might jeopardize your ability to become the Pirate King... and I can't let anything else happen between us when I know you'll choose being the Pirate King over a father." She said everything in a half-whispered rush, trying to get all of the words out as fast as possible. She couldn't look up at him, afraid of the expression he might have on his face.

"That's why I left, before, in the shower…" she blushed, tilting her head down a little as escaped strands from her chignon fell over her face. "I wasn't ready to commit when I'm not sure if you can commit the same... if I have a baby, I have to dedicate my whole life to that kid. Pirating could be all over."

His heart dropped into his stomach and he wasn't sure which one of her phrases had caused the fall. The fact that he didn't do anything wrong or the second part.

That he was going to have to choose between Pirate King… and a baby. Or at least, that's how she saw it. In his head, he weighed the options. Being the Pirate King is everything he ever wanted; to rule the seas without a single care in the world. But… Nami made a good point in that raising a baby presented some significant leverage to his enemies looking for something to use against him. And while he had hated it when Shanks said it to him when he was little, the high seas were really no place for a kid.

If he chose to continue his journey to be the Pirate King… he'd have to give up being a father. He'd have to give up Nami. He was not ready to make that choice.

Wow. This was not the kinda conversation he was thinking he was going to have with her when he apologized for hurting her feelings. This was deep shit.

"Why can't I have both?" he asked her, slipping a hand up behind the nape of her neck and tilting her face back to look up at him, "Babies are small, sure, but once they get older… I was tough shit at 8 years old. I ate the Gum Gum Fruit and sliced my eye open to prove it," he pointed to the scar under his left eye, "I'm not on a time limit to be Pirate King. I'll just kick everyone else's ass who tries to get there first. Then I can have time to help you with the baby," he dropped his forehead down to hers so that they were touching and he was looking at her slightly cross-eyed.

"Don't make me choose between Pirate King and you. I can't do that," he added, his voice low and serious, his eyes searching her face. Then, he grinned and kissed the tip of her nose and plopped his hat on her head, successfully messing up the girly bun she had going on.

"Come on, this is casino night. We can't get too serious before a party," he dropped his hand and gave her ass a tap with his hand and a sly smile spread over his face, "This dress is really short…" he commented idly.

His words created mixed feelings in her, but the larger of those feelings was definitely happiness. He equated her with his desire to become a Pirate King. That was... well, huge. Luffy wanted one thing above all else, and now he wanted her just as much…?

It was a confession of a commitment if there ever would be one from Monkey D. Luffy.

She wasn't so sure about how patient he'd be to hold off on voyaging once the baby came, but he gave her the hope that there could be a happy future waiting for her. Even the thought of Watcher wasn't enough to dim this happy feeling blooming in her chest from his words, his actions.

The look in his eyes, the serious expression, that had fallen into place when he told her he couldn't choose between her and being the Pirate King sent shivers of awareness all the way to her toes. Then, like the flip of a switch, he was grinning again and kissing the tip of her nose.

"Going to the casino doesn't meant party time... you can't lose all of my money, Luffy, or I'll be very angry," she told him with a grudging smile, a slight blush stealing over her features as he tapped her ass and made a comment with such an expression that said he'd love to devour her.

She winked and sashayed out of the room in front of him, making sure he could truly appreciate just how short the dress was, his hat falling off her head and bouncing across her shoulder blades.

A/N:

_I haven't done a final thought in a while…_

_**Final Thought from Nami:**__ Don't you dare lose my money!_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	37. Chapter 37

~Chapter Thirty~

_*****MINI – LIME WARNING*****_

_**Who doesn't like a little mini lime?**_

Everyone had agreed on splurging for the night, since they didn't get to come to a casino very often, and dinner was first on the list. The casino attracted a lot of attention from many different islands, and so it was on the wealthier end of the spectrum. Even one of the simpler restaurants was still fancy by Pirate standards, and they ended up deciding to eat at the Casino itself.

They were seated at two tables that had been pulled together to accommodate their 9 person crew, and somehow Nami ended up sitting directly across from Luffy, who was flanked by Zoro and Franky. On either side of Nami sat Tikka and Robin, as the ladies had been seated together. She couldn't help but notice that Tikka had chosen to sit across from Zoro, and the arrangement had her glanced from Robin to Franky and back with a curiosity about their relationship. Which was mostly non-existent, but she'd definitely noticed that Franky was more drawn to her than any other member of the crew.

It gave her something to mull over in her head as food was placed in front of them, and Nami's eyes were drawn back to Luffy. She couldn't keep her eyes off of him tonight, to be truthful. With the new knowledge that he was willing to commit to her and the baby as much as being the Pirate King, she just wanted to jump his bones. It made her antsy as she hurried to finish her meal without being rude through the dinner conversation, led mostly by Franky, Tikka, Chopper, and Usopp.

He loved to eat. Aside from being a pirate, it was his second favorite thing.

And he was surprising himself because he couldn't focus on the delicious meal in front of him when Nami was literally a foot across the table from him. Something about their conversation earlier and clearing the air with her just made him want to jump her. Not to mention the dress she was wearing…

He tried really hard to participate in conversation. Tikka was engaging him big time about gambling and he got into her discussion with her pretty heavily for a moment there, that is, until he shifted his feet and bumped against Nami's leg. He knew it was hers too, from the way she tensed and snapped her eyes to his. His whole body flushed with awareness. God damn, she looked good tonight…

A wicked thought occurred to him and he didn't disguise his devious intention from her, his eyes flashing briefly before he consumed himself with food and conversation with purpose. Under the table though, thoroughly hidden by the long table cloth, he stretched his arm out until he could tap her bare knee. He flipped his eyes up to her to gauge her reaction and suddenly was very confused when she did nothing. He frowned and tapped her leg again and this time, he got something.

Something… someone, gave him a good thrust in the jewels, completely winding him for a second that he nearly choked on what he was eating. He snapped his hand back and coughed as Zoro slapped his back.

"You okay?" the swordsman asked.

"Ya… ya… I'm good…" Luffy sputtered, gasping. Across the table, he noticed that Robin was giving him a little smirk that clearly bespoke of revenge and he fought the flush that worked over his face and stuffed food in his gullet faster. Clearly… he tapped the wrong leg…

"This is good food," he added, trying to break up the sudden awkwardness he felt, "Sanji! This is almost as good as your cooking!"

"They could stand to take a few hints from my culinary expertise," the cook replied casually.

It took Luffy a few minutes to recover and once he did, he decided he was going to try again under the table. He nudged Nami's foot with his and when he got a look from her, he knew he'd scored correctly this time. He stretched his arm under the table and tapped her leg, successfully making her jump a little and he kept a little smirk on his face, ambiguous and continued to eat and drink and converse with his nakama. All the while, under the table, he walked his fingertips up her knee, along her thigh until he crept right up under that short dress of hers. His heart was racing and his adrenaline was pumping at the idea that they were in such a public place, even more public than the dorms where everyone slept and the thought was titillating. She couldn't do a thing about his intention, short of leaving the table.

"So, Luffy! What are you going to do first!?" Tikka asked him.

He shifted his gaze over to her and grinned, "I dunno! The roulette table sounds awesome!" under the table, his fingers toyed with the edge of Nami's lacy undies that she was wearing. He drank some water to disguise the fact that his heart was on overload.

"Luffy! We should count cards!" Usopp suggested, "We could win so much money that way!"

"Yeah! Luffy, let's count cards!" Tikka seconded.

"Okay! How do we count cards?" he asked. Holy fuck… she was totally wet and hot for him. He dipped his finger beneath the panties to touch her slowly, torturously. He dared to flicker his eyes to her and then back to Usopp and Tikka, who started to explain the finer details of card counting.

Nami was very aware of Luffy's legs under the table, especially since he kept bumping her, either by accident or on purpose, she couldn't tell. She'd taken a peek, casually, as she'd leaned back and found that Tikka and Zoro were having a full-out footsie war, and Tikka's bare toes - she'd already slipped out of her heels - were rubbing against Zoro's ankles and making the swordsman's ears pink.

Deciding that was just too... ugh... to stare at, she'd begun ignoring what was going on under the table. That is, until a hand touched her leg. Not a foot or a leg, a hand.

Her eyes flashed up to find Luffy giving her a look over the table. Her mouth popped open in surprise, and she had half a mind to demand what he was doing, but Tikka jumped right into a conversation about gambling, and she became painfully aware of how public they were. This became even more of an issue when his hand slid up her thigh and then toyed with the edge of her panties.

She stiffened, unexpected heat shooting through her belly, as she straightened in her chair and shot Luffy a "cut-it-out" look before she tried to re-engage into the conversation.

He wasn't even looking at her! He was talking to Usopp and Tikka, as if he wasn't fondling her under the table. She bit her lip, trying to ignore the sensation of his fingers sliding against her skin insistently, and then suddenly he slipped under her panties, and she jumped, making Tikka shoot her a questioning look.

"Just... dropped an ice cube…" Nami said with a false grin on her face, trying to keep her expression as neutral as possible as he stroked her slowly, and her fingers clutched at the edge of the table. Tikka glanced down, over to Luffy, and Nami cursed her perceptiveness as awareness dawned on her expression.

It just made the situation a hell of a lot more awkward. Especially considering she was insanely turned on now, shocking herself more than anything else. Even though they were in a public place, Luffy's wicked grin and his deft fingers were making her catch fire, right at the table.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She abruptly pushed back from the table, closing her legs and pulling away from Luffy's hand. She shot to her feet and was immediately the center of attention as eyes turned up to her questioningly.

"Uh, bathroom," she said with a sweet smile, then spun on her heel and hurried away from the table at a fast walk, heading for the bathrooms. She wanted to look over her shoulder at Luffy, but strictly held her course and pushed into the bathroom, which was blissfully empty and had three stalls with individual locks.

Glancing at the mirror, she caught her own reflection, and saw that her eyes were glowing with heat, her cheeks rosy, her chest flushed. She bit her lip, glanced at the stalls, then locked herself in one to finish the job that Luffy had started. Damn him for making her so horny in a public place...

He watched her get up from the table and had to suck back the self satisfied smirk on his face as she looked incredibly frazzled as she walked away. Her Haki was all shades of reds and purples. He had the insane urge to follow her and continue what he was doing to her, but he also knew that that would instantly draw attention to them, especially because he hadn't had his fourth helping of food yet and his nakama would know that was strange.

So, he solved it but shoveling food into his mouth faster and with more vigor than earlier before declaring himself done and pushing away from the table.

"I'll be right back!" he announced when everyone glanced at him too with questioning gazes. He didn't even care that it was probably pretty damned apparent that he was going after Nami. He was so strung out right now they were lucky he didn't jump her at the table in front of them. He'd had four flipping days with blue balls. He needed some damned relief.

Luffy disappeared from the table and Tikka glanced around at everyone before turning back to her plate, "Were Zoro and I this obnoxious?" she asked, a smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

"I'd say it was a fair shake," Usopp agreed and the rest of the crew nodded and snickered, causing Zoro's face to flush and him to crawl into the bottom of his sake glass.

Luffy knew exactly where he was going to find Nami. He didn't need to know that she was in the bathroom; he followed her Haki and pushed his way into the girl's bathroom. Three stalls greeted him and two sinks. No one else was here but her.

Thank god.

He locked the outer door, ensuring that no one would be walking in on them and casually walked down the line of half doors. It became blatantly obvious that she wasn't here to take a piss or doll up her face like most girls did. He sorta knew what he was going to find before he even followed her in here and the thought made his head spin.

She was in the last stall, and he could see the back of her calves as she was leaning against the door. She was utterly still and he put his face right next to the gap in the doorframe and said to her, his voice acquiring a breathless quality, "Don't stop on my account…" then, he stretched his arm down and up so that he could unlock the door, not waiting for her permission and barged into the tiny little space with her, forcing her away from the door before shutting it, locking it and pinning her against it.

"Go ahead…" he whispered, ducking his head to kiss her neck, "I'll watch…"

A/N:

_I got nothing. Cheers._

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	38. Chapter 38

~Chapter Thirty-Eight~

_***MINI-LIME WARNING***_

_Who doesn't love a mini lime?_

Nami was in the stall, her hand between her legs, when the door to the women's bathroom slammed open. She froze instantly, holding her breath, her eyes rolling to the side as she listened for who might have entered.

The sound of... flip flops came to her ears, and she closed her eyes, thinking, _no, it couldn't be…_

And then he spoke, and her heart plummeted to her stomach.

Within seconds, Strawhat Luffy barged into the stall, flipped her around, and pinned her against the stall, his lips bee-lining for her neck. "I'll watch," he rumbled, and her breath hitched.

Watch…?

Her hand, resting on her thigh, curled into a small fist as her head fell back and a small moan escaped from her lips.

"This is all your fault, Luffy," she whispered harshly to him, giving in to him, shivers of pleasure running down from her neck, where his lips were. Her hand slid down to her inner thigh, then up to her own heat, touching herself for him as she writhed and rubbed her breasts against his chest.

He chuckled at her, his breath catching just a little as he felt her shift her hand and then she rubbed herself against him, her head tipping to the side, "I'll gladly take the blame for this…" he replied before kissing down her neck again. With the state of the dress, he had no barriers between him and the top of the bodice, the swells of her breasts.

One hand he used to tug the tie of the corset so that it loosened the material enough so that he could shift into it enough to graze the tips of his fingers against the peak of her breast. He leaned back a little so that he could tip his head down to watch what Nami was doing. And he found that he couldn't see much of anything with all that poofy material on the skirt.

He reached down and tugged the lace panties right off her, putting his sandal on them and stomping them down to the floor when they were passed her knees. Then, he grabbed one of her knees, so reminiscent of earlier in that week, so that her hips pushed the material up.

Oh ya… now he could see what she was doing. And god damn, it was hotter than he thought it would be. Her hand, the tips of her fingers exactly where she wanted them to be, in that sweet spot that made her crazy.

"Jeezus, Nami…" he groaned, eyes riveted, his breath catching. He slid his hand up her leg until he could cover her hand with his, feeling her stroke herself, "I'll take it from here," he took over for her, rubbing her where she ached. His other hand was still tucked in the top of her dress, brushing over her nipple again and again.

Luffy was very particular about what he liked, and it totally rocked her world as he tugged and adjusted her until he had her exactly where he wanted. Her eyes gleamed wickedly as a smile tugged at her lips.

"You're insatiable, Luffy... You're such a bad influence on me," she told him with a lusty chuckle, undulating her body under his scrutiny and rubbing herself faster. That is, until his hand covered hers and insisted her out of the way.

His touch was a million times better than her own, and she let out a gasp, her head falling back. "Yessss…" she whispered lowly.

She arched her breast into his hand and reached a hand up to nab him by the hair on the back of his head, and pulling him down for a scorching kiss as her body exploded under his touch, coming apart into a million pieces.

She moaned into his lips, lightly biting his lower lip, her free hand clamping down over his and holding him fast to her body as her hips jerked and she arched her back, pressing her body into his.

"Luffy…" she whispered harshly against his lips, sagging against him, one hand clutching at his shirt.

She broke apart under his touch and he continued to torture her, ringing out every last sexy whimper from her until she physically had to stop his hand. He chuckled softly at her against her lips when she kissed him hard. She held him fast by his hair, her fingers tugging and pulling at his scalp, sending tingles down his spine.

She sighed against his mouth and he kissed her again, less desperately and shifted his hand just slightly against her, enough so that she gasped and squirmed and he couldn't help it. He groaned and dropped his head into her shoulder. He was so turned on, his whole body so hot that he was certain that if he gave her a round #2, he would come right there without her ever touching him.

He managed to pull his hand away from her and dropped her knee so that her skirt covered her hips. He pushed away from the door, away from her irresistible body and tied up her bodice, hiking the dress up for her. Then, he straightened the lapels of his jacket and smoothed his pant legs, his hands trembling slightly. God, and he thought he was strung out before he came in the bathroom.

"Alright…" he said, his voice a little rough around the edges, "Let's get back out there before someone comes looking for us."

He shifted his hand over her again, and she squirmed against him as the aftershocks of the first orgasm hit her sharply by the encouragements of his fingers. He buried his face into her shoulder, and she shuddered underneath him, overwhelmed by the emotions that surged in her after the pleasure finally subsided.

He pulled away from her and had the decency to straighten both of them out, and she pulled her panties up quickly, reaching up to feel her hair. His rough voice drove shivers down her spine. She cast him a hot look through the strands of freed red hair, then winked and opened the door, sashaying out of the stall.

She quickly checked her appearance, then turned back to march up to Luffy, reached down and lightly cup his balls, stroking his shaft with her thumb, and leaned up to press her lips right below his ear, murmuring, "Tonight, I'll take care of you…"

Grinning, she turned, so close to him that her tight ass brush against his bulge, and promptly headed for the door, taking another glance at herself in the mirror.

She was a tad... ruffled. Her cheeks were aflame and her eyes bright and satisfied. Her hair was a little mussed... but then, she'd resigned herself to being a pirate. It's not like she had to worry about what people thought about her. And from the way Luffy kept eyeing her, she looked fine to him.

Hiding her amused smile behind a raised hand, she pushed back out to the casino, and found that most of their nakama were crowded around a roulette table, calling bets and watching raptly as the ball went around the tiles.

Nami glanced back at Luffy one last time, then headed over to the table, and began assessing the betting situation. She was going to make them so much MONEY.

A/N:

_Cheers._

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	39. Chapter 39

~Chapter Thirty-Nine~

_"And as long as I've got my suit and tie, Imma leave it all on the floor tonight. Annie got fixed up to the nines. Let me show you a few things… All dressed up in black and white, Annie's dressed in that dress I like. Love is swinging in the air tonight. Let me show you a few things…" ~JT_

She opened the stall door and he followed her out, still straightening his shirt and jacket. She took a look at herself in the mirror then turned to face him, brushing her body against his. He tensed, his nerves in an accelerated state of heightened and she made it worse by dipping her hand to cup him right through his pants, sending an electric jolt through him.

"Tonight, I'll take care of you," she whispered against his neck before sashaying out of the bathroom, mindfully flaunting that ass and the shortness of her dress. He was rooted to the spot for a whole three heartbeats; he didn't trust himself to move right away. God damn… was casino night over yet?

He followed her out of the bathroom and realized that all of his nakama were out and gambling now, many of them circling the roulette table, cheering and calling bets. He watched as Nami took stock of the situation and he could practically see the cogs working in her mind as she calculated the odds of winning and weighed them by how much money she would be getting should she win. He had total faith that they were going to be filthy flipping rich by the end of the night. Nami loved her money.

A shout of jubilation erupted from the roulette table and Luffy pulled his mind back to the casino night ahead of them and rushed the table. Usopp was doing a victory dance, making manly muscles and claiming he was "Captain Usopp, also known as Usopp the Gambling Shark" as he took a boatload of money from the dealer, the ball having landed in the slot that he chose.

"Ya! Bring it home, Usopp!" Luffy cheered.

The night began in earnest. Nami started coaching everyone and groups went around to take the place by storm. Zoro and Tikka were a pair at the slot machines, Sanji and Usopp stayed at the roulette table with Chopper, and Robin and Franky started playing poker with a group. Nami circled and Luffy just went wherever he felt luckiest. Which was everywhere.

By the end of a couple of hours, Nami had what the crew referred to as "beri eyes" where her face was flushed and her eyes danced and she began counting the money and thinking in terms of cuts and percentages.

"How much do we have?" Luffy asked Zoro, who was sitting at the bar with Tikka, his fist wrapped around the neck of a bottle of sake.

"Dunno for sure, but she said something like nearly a million each," he replied, taking a swig. He offered some to Luffy, who took a gulp as well, a smirk on his face.

Somehow, they all ended up at the poker table; Robin, Tikka, Usopp, Luffy and Sanji all had hands in the game. The rest of the crew hung over their shoulders, watching hands and bets and general advising. Robin had the epitome of a poker face and Tikka had this sly smirk about her that Luffy wasn't sure if that meant she had a good hand or if she was bluffing and Usopp looked nervous. Sanji… he just snuffed a cigarette out in the ash tray and looked generally focused.

"Hey! Usopp! What do you have?" Luffy asked, leaning over to check out the sniper's cards.

Usopp gasped and tugged them away from the captain, "You can't look, Luffy! That's cheating!"

"Awwww! Come on! I just wanna peek!" but Usopp was relentless so Luffy changed tactics and leaned over to check Robin's cards, "What about you, Robin?"

She showed him and he chuckled, his laugh a little evil, "Is that a good hand?" he whispered.

She smirked secretively, "I don't think it's a bad one."

"Call your bets, folks! All bets are final!" the dealer announced. Starting to the right of the dealer, everyone called their bets, raising them or folding. Tikka raised the dealer, Usopp folded, Sanji stayed the same, Robin raised the dealer and Luffy…

"Call your bet, Straw Hat," the dealer reminded him. Luffy made a face, glancing at his cards, glancing at the pool, at the money, at his cards… Nami had given them a good amount to gamble with…

"ALL IN!" he declared, taking the entire pile of money in front of him; and everyone else's in his crew, and thrusting it all into the center of the table.

"You IDIOT!" Usopp shouted, seconded by Sanji and Chopper. Franky laughed and Robin covered her mouth with her hand.

"All bets are final," the dealer said, pulling the money into the center of the pool with a gleeful grin, "You have a lot of faith in your hand, Straw Hat? You feel lucky today?"

"I feel lucky every day," Luffy chuckled.

Nami took her eyes off Luffy for one second, ONE, and when she turned back to see how things were going at the table, her jaw dropped to the floor and her heart burst out of her chest and began to run a marathon right out of the casino.

"You bet it ALL?" she shrieked, earning her attention from most of the casino, but she didn't care, all she could do was glare furiously at her captain. "You bet all of _my_ money?" she asked in a venomous hiss and reached out to throttle her captain.

"If you lose all of that money, Monkey D. Luffy, there will be nothing left of you by morning. I'll sell you to the marines myself for your bounty," she promised him in a dire tone, and Franky let out a barking laugh and clapped Luffy on the shoulder.

"She's terrifying, bro... you have no idea what you have in store for you," Franky just chuckled as he shook his head, then let out a yelp as he shied away from Nami's shifted glare. "Ow! Reign it in, you terrifying woman."

"Nami's scary…" Chopper whined, hiding behind Robin in his backwards crouch, making Nami roll her eyes and turn her attention back to the poker game, eyes so focused she could burn a hole into the poker table.

"Reveal your hands, gentlemen," the dealer called calmly, then leaned back to assess the outcome. Nami held her breath as her eyes darted from card to card that everyone hand in their hand, including the two strangers they were playing with.

Everything was perfectly still for thirty whole seconds. One of the two strangers, a guy with a bushy beard, suddenly let out a whoop, and Nami felt her heart crash down into the ocean under the island itself.

"Hold on, Mr. Lupo…" the dealer frowned, leaned forward, and shifted Luffy's cards a tad so he could spy the last card that was almost hidden. He stared for a second while everyone stared at him with bated breaths.

"Strawhat Luffy is the winner…" the man said with an air of surprise, blinking, looking at the giant pile of money, then looking back up at him with wide eyes. "This was a death match round as well... the pot is doubled for the winner.

Nami's jaw dropped to the ground for the second time that night.

Double…?

They had almost ten million beries in that pot, combined with the stranger's money, that was around eleven million beries. Doubled.

"We won!" Nami shouted, leaping up from the chair and into the air with a victory pump of her fist she'd somehow acquired from the guys. Feeling beyond jubilant, she leapt onto Luffy's lap without a second thought, straddling him in her short cocktail dress, grabbed the lapels of his shirt, and pulled him up for a fierce and swift kiss. Around them was a combination of 'ews' from Chopper, Sanji, and Usopp, while others in the casino within the vicinity cat called and wolf whistled as Strawhat Luffy got some unexpected booty.

Because everyone knew who Strawhat Luffy was by now.

Nami pulled back from the kiss and grinned down at Luffy with beris in her eyes. "You won!"

While everyone else seemed concerned that Nami was truly terrifying when someone came between her and her money, Luffy… wasn't. Nami temper didn't bother him or scare him so much as it entertained him.

"I will sell you to the marines myself for your bounty!" she growled vehemently, her little hands wrapped around his throat and giving him a good shake. Probably the only person in the world that couldn't choke and die under her assault, considering he was made of rubber.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, but it was severely compromised by the silly grin he was sporting.

"You aren't sorry," Usopp muttered, waving his hand in front of his nose.

"That's why I'm sorry," Luffy chuckled, only stroking Nami's ire more.

There was a silence as all the players revealed their hands, Nami's fingers still around his neck as everyone's eyes darted around the table. In all honesty, he had no idea how to play poker… he just kept cards that all looked the same, a matching set…

"Straw Hat Luffy is the winner…" the dealer said, his voice shocked and surprised, "A high straight of clubs…"

More silence. Then, everyone's eyes turned to Luffy at the same time, every set incredulous that the often clueless captain just won a serious round of poker with a fantastic hand.

The decibel in the casino shot through the ceiling as people cheered his incredible win. Straw hat nakama jumped and cheered the loudest and Luffy threw his head back and laughed at them, "See?" he exclaimed, "I'm the luckiest guy in the ocean! 22 million beris!"

He didn't get to say anything further; at that moment, someone joined him in his chair, wearing a short, sparkly black cocktail dress and she pulled the lapels of his coat forward to give him a sizzling kiss. It took him a whole heartbeat to realize it was Nami who was laying one on him and he grinned against her mouth, his hands settling on her hips as his blood pressure skyrocketed. Cat calls and wolf whistled sounded around them, with a few vomiting noises from Usopp and Chopper, but he was thrumming from the thrill of winning and her smooch to get too worked up over the audience they had.

"You WON!" she pulled back from him, her eyes bright, her cheeks flushed.

"You love your money. I wasn't going to lose it," he told her, grin ear to ear. He pulled his hat off his head and plopped it on hers again. Then, he called out to the crowd, "BARTENDER! Drinks on me for everyone!" and laughed when the room got even louder.

It was getting started as a rambunctious pirate party when suddenly, the doors burst open violent and a gun shot echoed through the room, stilling every person in the casino. All eyes turned to the door; Luffy glanced around Nami's head inquisitively.

At least two score Marines stood in the doorway, the man in front holding a hand gun up at the ceiling, where a sizzling hole steamed, "I am Captain Kuzashai and this party is over! We received a call that the Straw Hat Pirates are here! Where is Monkey D. Luffy, aka, Straw Hat Luffy?"

A/N:

_I need to finish this story before 2014… seriously…_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	40. Chapter 40

~Chapter Forty~

Luffy tensed in his chair, eyes narrowing. From where he was in the far back of the room, the Marines clearly hadn't spotted him. Or his trademark hat. Usopp, standing nearby to the two of them, quietly and slowly pulled the hat off Nami's head and slipped it between her and Luffy's bodies, hiding it from view.

"My men and I will rip this place apart brink from brink to find Luffy and his nakama!" the marine captain continued, his boots making a heavy noise against the floor as he proceeded into the casino.

The Straw Hat captain glanced around the casino as a subtle shifting went through the crowd. People started murmuring to each other, eyes darting towards him and Nami. Instinctively, he tightened his grip on her, one hand on her hip, the other resting against her abdomen. For once in his life, he said nothing, made no indication that he was here; it seemed apparent to his nakama that they were curious as to why he hadn't stood up and announced himself.

All he could think about was what the Marines would do to Nami if they found out she was pregnant with his baby. Probably the same thing they would have done to Portgas D. Rouge if they found out she was preggo with Ace, Gol D. Roger's son.

He wasn't having any of that drama.

"RUN!" someone shouted and suddenly, absolute pandemonium broke out around them. Pirates scattered, tables were knocked over, screaming, shouting, gun fire, gambling chips flying, swords clashing. Completely and utter chaos. So… that was what all the murmuring and shifting was about…

That was his chance. Sporting a grin – because it was impossible for him not to think that on some level, running from the Marines was fun – he grabbed Nami and darted through the crowd, his straw hat on his head and the 22 million in his free hand. He spotted Zoro and Tikka slipping away and Sanji and Usopp making a speedy getaway. Franky had Robin and Chopper. "MEET AT THE SUNNY!" Luffy hollered to them, "GET BACK TO THE SHIP!"

"That's him! I see Straw Hat!" a marine spotted him and alerted his comrades around him, "It's Straw Hat and Nami the Cat Burglar!"

"Oh shit! Run, Nami!" Luffy chuckled, ducking and pulling her through the door just as gun shots rang out, chasing their heels.

"Don't let them escape! We'll never catch them if they reach the docks!" the captain shrieked.

Luffy laughed and pulled Nami along by her hand, racing through town with a dozen Marines on their heels. Dark had settled in nicely by this point; the only light being cast from the street lights through the main strip, throwing high contrast shadows everywhere. Shadows that he could use to his advantage; both of them were wearing black…

"This way!" he told her, slipping into a dark alleyway and gum gum-ing them up to the roof of one of the buildings. Marines piled into the alley and looked around, suddenly finding the space empty. Luffy stifled a laugh behind his hand and led her over the roof and down the other side before heading towards the docks where they were going to meet with the rest of the crew.

"You okay?" he asked her, glancing around to make sure they were truly not being followed. He could hear gun shots and screams from over near the casino still as the marines thoroughly infiltrated the place. Then, he crouched down and rubbed her belly through her dress, "Sorry, baby! It only gets more exciting than this!" he laughed, stood, kissed her nose and headed towards the pier, the bag of gambling money slung over his shoulder.

"Man! I should find out who called the Marines on us and kick their ass!" he started, his expression a little blood thirsty, "They ruined our party! But! At least we got the money, ne, Nami?" he glanced at her with a smile.

Before prompting tripping over his flip flops and landing hard on his face with a yelp, "Ow! What the hell…?" he complained, but his words were short lived as something grabbed him by the ankles and started hauling him backwards, dragging him down the pier.

"Ah!" he yelled, dropping the money and clawing at the boards in a vain attempt to slow down, "Nami!" he flipped over and reached back to swipe at whatever was dragging him. But… there was nothing there… just darkness and shadow…

* * *

><p>When the Marines burst in, Nami wasn't overly surprised. Casinos attract pirates like honey attracts bees, and they were sure to have informants to keep an eye on which pirates were entering the casino.<p>

It was unusual when Luffy didn't own up to being who he was... Luffy was always proud to be the future King of the Pirates, but as she glanced at him, she realized his attention was on her belly.

Warmth and fuzzies exploded in her stomach, and she could only stare at Luffy rather than plot them a way out of this mess. He... was protecting her, and the baby. And the gesture, to not proudly announce who he was, touched her deeply. She reached out and covered his hands with hers.

Luckily, everyone was on their side, because instead of instantly ratting them out, everyone else in the room just... scattered, creating instant pandemonium. Nami couldn't help but smirk; she was in a good mood from the win and because she knew that the marines weren't catching any of the Strawhat Pirates tonight.

Luffy sprang into action faster than her, and started dragging her out of the casino and towards the docks. Nami just held on for dear life as he began gum-guming them all over the place. They were in midair, halfway between one roof and the next and enveloped in shadow, when a whisper sounded by her ear.

"_Nami…"_

She almost lost her footing, though thankfully Luffy had a firm grip on her. Was that…?

She looked sharply behind her, then down to the shadows as cold fear drenched her insides. "Luffy…" she started, but he was crouched down and talking to her belly. She frowned, opening her mouth to ask him if he'd heard something, but he suddenly bounced up and kissed her on the nose-which would have been adorable if she wasn't having a panic attack-and started babbling about kicking someone's ass.

She wasn't listening to his words. Another whisper sounded behind her, louder. _"I've found you, Nami... and what a naughty girl you've been…"_

The words were said quickly, softly, and she stiffened immediately, whipping around to face Luffy, but he was gone. His sudden yell alerted her to the fact that he was being dragged away by... shadows.

"Luffy!" She screamed, shooting towards him. She passed the money, not even sparing it a glance, and lunged for Luffy's hand, but midway through her jump, warms suddenly shot out and wrapped tightly around her body. She let out a vehement shriek and looked down to see they were shadow arms...

Watcher's arms. He was here.

"LUFFY!" she screamed.

* * *

><p>Nami screamed for him and he twisted around, kinking his head back to see her and reach for her, his body bouncing off the wooden planks as he was dragged down the pier by his own shadow. He remembered her mentioning that Watcher ate the Shadow Shadow Fruit…<p>

He'd found them.

"NAMI!" he hollered, catching a raised plank by the tips of his fingers and holding on for dear life. His arms stretched; he cursed their elasticity as his torso was hauled farther down the docks. In the dim light, he saw shadowy arms curl around her and hold her fast as she struggled and kicked, her arms outstretched as if she could still reach him some twenty feet down the walk. Panic for her safety spiked his rage and he freed one hand to twist around and throw a punch at the shadowy figure of himself at his ankles.

"Gum Gum Pistol!" he growled, his fist collided with the shadow… only to go right through it and his eyes widened when a shade hand came back and barreled him in the face; exactly where he punched the shadow.

Oh fuck… that… hurt…

He lost what little hold he had on the plank and his body snapped back and he realized with a sickening lurch in his stomach that this thing planned to drag him over the edge and into the water. To a place where he couldn't do anything to save Nami…

"I'm going to kick your ass!" he shouted, twisting around again and launching a full-fledged Gum Gum Gatling as his shadow. Every single punch went through the shade and came back to him tenfold until his whole body felt like he'd been completely tenderized. The end of the pier came into view and he clawed at the dock, desperate for a hold, but the shadow switched its grip on him and grabbed him by his hair, slamming his head into the wood, making stars explode in front of his eyes and blood pour for the gash it created across his forehead.

It occurred to him in a rush that this shouldn't hurt as badly as it did. The only way punches actually bothered him were if they were imbued with…

He didn't even finish his thought before he felt the icy sting of water soak through his clothes. He scrambled for the wood of the dock, anything to hold him above the water, but it was useless. The fatigue settled in nearly instantly and it expended more energy from him the more he fought against it. His body grew weak, his head light, but the panic and black rage boiling through him kept his eyes open and conscious.

"LUFFY!" Nami shrieked, twisting and contorting her body to try and escape the shadow arms. She could barely see Luffy's head above the water. He was going to drown. Watcher was going to drown him…

"Straw Hat, you will die for your transgressions against my wife," Watcher's words came from every shadow, echoing eerily and making shivers run down her spine. Nami's head snapped up, and her struggles increased.

"No! You leave him alone!" Nami shouted, twisting, her fingers brushing her Clima-Tact, "Leave him alone and I'll…"

A shadow hand manifested and slapped her hard across the face, sending her flying to the ground. Shadows grabbed her Clima-tact and hurled the three pieces across the pier, the aluminum tinkling. She gasped, tasting blood in her mouth.

"You'll do what, my sweet?" Watcher growled, "You'll come back to me? I shall have you anyway," he yanked her up by her hair and she cried out.

"Nami…!" Luffy shouted from the water and she opened her eyes to glance at him, struggling to stay conscious in the ocean.

"I will kill him, but first, he gets to witness me removing his spawn from my bride…" Watcher's shadowy voice continued.

"Spawn?" she demanded in a high-pitched scream of pain and confusion. She was suddenly thrown down onto the docks with enough force to wind her. She lay, stunned, for a few seconds before shadow arms yanked her back up again.

"Yes... you fucked this rubber man like a whore and now you carry his spawn... but you're MY wife... and soon, you will carry MY child," Watcher chuckled darkly, a face materializing out of the shadows in front of her as a hand grabbed her hair and yanked back so her face was tilted upwards. She growled and spat in the face. A hand slapped her again, hard enough to whip her head to the side.

"Nami! No…Don't touch her!" Luffy's strangled voice shouted.

"Fiesty, Straw Hat. Stay DOWN!" Watcher's voice whispered around him and Luffy's head sank under the surface for a brief, heart-stopping second before he came back up with gasp.

He twisted in the water; his movements slow, but his intention desperate. He had to get to her, he had to save her… it crossed his mind in a fleeting, choking panic that all he could do was watch everything happen because of his curse with the sea. He was trapped like a mouse in a trap, unable to do anything as everything he ever wanted was ripped away from him. Panic made him hyperventilate. His nakama… he had to save her. He was stronger now, stronger than he had been back then and still, it was just the same. He couldn't help her…

"Witness, Straw Hat, as I purge your legacy from her body…" Watcher's voice whispered around his head.

Luffy shouted in alarm, horrified, as shadows slithered into Nami's mouth and her whole body seemed to glow shadows. She fell to the ground on her hands and knees and threw up shadows and something dark that looked like blood.

"Luffy…" she cried as shadows wrapped around her and hauled her back up to her feet again.

He screamed her name until he couldn't anymore, until his voice wouldn't work and it struck a cord in him as she cried for him and he could do nothing. Shadows tore at her body, ripping her skin, her clothing, beating her senseless.

Then… the coup de grace. The shadows converged into a giant fist that hovered in front of her ominously and she let out a scream that echoed with his shout as it came down and punched her so hard in the stomach that he could see her throw up again from his distance away.

"NO! NAMI! NO!" Luffy hollered as the shadow hands skittered away from her and she collapsed into a heap on the pier. Watcher's eerie laugh echoed around them and just as she picked her head up to pin Luffy with a look that had his heart breaking, the hand holding his hair released him and he sank to the bottom of the bay.

A/N:

_The feels…_

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

_Luffy:_ Jesachi

_Nami:_ Goldensomething

_Sub-characters:_ Combined Effort

_Copyright 2011-2013_


	41. Chapter 41

~Chapter Forty-One~

Zoro was running through town, dragging Tikka by the hand as she waved her sword and demanded to go back and take on all the Marines herself, spouting vehement curses that made even his language look good.

"Tikka! Can it, woman! You're making escape difficult!" he growled at her, glancing over his shoulder. He could hear screams and the thud of heavy boots in the distance…

Something solid halted Zoro's progress and he stumbled back a couple of steps, only to recover and see that he slammed headlong into someone coming out of the alley ahead of them.

"You shitty swordsman! You nearly knocked me out!"

"Curly cook! Watch where you're going!"

Usopp came out of the alley too, looking thoroughly winded as Zoro and Sanji measured each other up, both of them raging with adrenaline and testosterone and looking for a fight, "Cut it out, you two! We have to get back to the ship, now! Have you seen the others?"

"Right here!" came a pitched voice and Franky, Robin and Chopper came out from around another building, "Let's go!" Chopper said.

"Anyone seen Luffy or Nami?" Robin asked as the seven of them ran towards the docks.

"No. They must already be there," Usopp supplied as they shot around a corner and entered the pier.

A hair-raising scream pierced the sky and everyone halted in their tracks as shivers went up and down their spines. The scream was followed by a hoarse shout; "NO! NAMI!"

No one knew the reason for the scream; but it was one of those instances where you didn't have to know any circumstances around it to know that this was the bad kind of scream, the type that had your adrenal gland on overload and either sent you into fight or flight. The seven nakama glanced at each other and everyone kicked into fight mode and took off down the pier, Zoro and Sanji leading the way. They turned the corner in time to see Nami collapse into a bloody heap on the docks and a distinct splash that could only be assumed that Luffy just got tossed into the ocean.

"I got Luffy!" Zoro shouted, his feet hitting the wood hollowly as he pushed his legs faster. Sanji nodded and headed straight for Nami, the rest of the crew coming up on them fast.

"What the hell happened here?" Usopp called as Zoro dove off the edge of the pier and into the dark depths. He couldn't see anything more than a few feet down and by the time he found Luffy at the bottom of the bay, the captain was unconscious and Zoro was desperately running out of air. He grabbed the rubber man by the collar of his jacket and hauled ass for the surface, coming up with a gasp and dragging Luffy's head above.

"Chopper!" Zoro gasped, "He's unconscious!" he glanced at the captain and noticed that he was mottled with bruises and had a gash on his forehead that the salt of the ocean cauterized nastily, "He's not in good shape!"

"I got him!" Tikka came rushing forward and helped Zoro and Luffy out of the water, "Chopper's working on Nami. She… she's a mess, Zoro…"

Zoro laid Luffy down across the docks and he and Tikka shared a look that had his heart leaping in his chest. The baby…

Tikka leaned down and performed a very speedy mouth-to-mouth on the captain until he choked out the water and gasped. Zoro helped him sit up, but the effort was short lived. Luffy glanced up at the swordsman and said, "Na…mi…"

"She'll be fine. Chopper's got her, you just relax, Luffy." Zoro assured him. Luffy nodded and promptly passed out again.

"We need to get them to the ship!" Chopper hollered. He was in his Heavy Point, cradling a very broken-looking Nami against his chest, "I have better supplies on board!"

"OW! Do you think the Marines got them?" Franky asked as they beat feet for the Sunny.

"The Marines would have taken them alive to collect the bounty," Robin offered as he hoisted her onto the deck, "Whoever did this had it out for these two…"

"Zoro! Come on!" Chopper called, coming up alongside Zoro, carrying Luffy. Chopper looked the captain over, "Jeezus, he looks bad too. That gash is nasty. What the hell happened here?" he shouldered open the office door and laid Nami on the bed carefully before pulling out a gurney cot for Luffy and instructing that he be laid there, "Now, get out, Zoro and I want Tikka and Robin in here stat!"

"Why the girls?" Zoro wondered, not putting two and two together.

"Don't question me! Tikka! Robin! Get in here!" Chopper looked frazzled and panic, "Men! OUT!" he looked so serious and ferocious that no one questioned him and soon, the door to the medical room was on lock down with the men waiting impatiently outside and Chopper and the girls inside.

Sanji was pissed. No... that was putting it mildly. He was so mad that flames danced over his body from time to time as he paced impatiently back and forth in front of the medical room. His hands, curled into fists at his sides, shook violently and his expression was black with rage.

"How dare someone touch beautiful Nami-san... how dare they do this-" he choked on his own words and whipped around suddenly to bury his fist into the mast. The Adam wood, strong enough to withstand cannon fire, shook for a moment before becoming still again.

"Ow! Calm down, bro," Franky said, coming over and resting one of his giant hands on the cook's back. "There's nothing we can do now but wait for them to tell us what happened... then we can go kick ass." For once, Franky's voice was low and calm, somber even. His eyes were hidden behind his glasses, but his shoulders were tense and he kept glancing at the medical room.

No one else said anything as silence stretched, and muffled sounds kept coming from the medical room. Tense, the men were antsy, but refused to look at one another as everyone brooded quietly. Suddenly, from inside the medical room, crying became apparent, and it wasn't Nami's voice... but Tikka's.

Everyone's heads whipped up to stare at the door, except Sanji. Sanji's hand, which had splayed out to rest on the mast with his head down, slowly curled into a fist again, and flames licked up and down his body. "She lost the baby…" he said quietly, voicing out loud what no one else would.

Tikka came out just then. Everyone glanced at her and she covered her mouth with her hand and just shook her head. She went to Zoro and buried her face in his chest and he squeezed her around the shoulders as she cried and cried. No one had openly talked about it, but everyone had secretly been excited for a little baby on the ship.

A shocked silence followed, and then Franky slowly lowered himself down to crouch in the grass, his head low. Usopp had tears in his eyes before he quickly turned his back on all of them and dashed them away. Suddenly, Sanji punched the mast again, harder this time, then quickly stormed off, towards the empty kitchen, flames licking up and down his suit. As he disappeared, a mourning silence reigned again.

A/N:

*cries*

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2013


	42. Chapter 42

~Chapter Forty Two~

"_This time won__'__t you save me, baby? I can feel myself giving up__…"_

"Yohohoho! I've returned at last!" a voice suddenly called from overboard, and Usopp dashed for the edge of the Sunny and leaned down to see Brook in a small skiff. He waved up at Usopp with his tophat, then bent his knees and shot up into the air, his light skeleton allowing him to clear the Sunny and then some, landing lightly on the deck amidst four shocked crew members.

"You all look so glum!" Brook announced with a flare, but his tone died down when all of their faces turned towards him. "What's happened? What have I missed!"

After the two years spent apart, Brook had intended to return on time, but had extended his tour to another kingdom for an extra few months, and had sent a letter ahead to let the crew know, in addition to pages upon pages of exclamations and news. Now he was finally back, and while everyone wanted to be happy, the air on the Sunny was definitely not sunny at all.

Franky slowly straightened from his crouch, glanced over at Robin for a long moment, who'd just come out to give them the confirmation of what Sanji had already said, then turned towards Brook and pointed to the boy's dormitory. "Come on, Skeleton, and I'll explain the last few months to you...we have a new nakama as well…." he gestured towards Tikka, still buried in Zoro's chest, "…but we can have intros later."

"Nami? What happened to the beautiful lady?" Brook asked, stopping to glance back at the door, but Franky hurried the man along to explain all.

Within a few hours, Brook was up to speed, and just as somber as the rest of the crew. He and Tikka had a short meet and greet, then she'd taken Zoro up to the weights room and crows nest, tears still shimmering in her golden eyes.

Usopp was down in his inventions room, locked away. Sanji was in the kitchen, cooking to ease his pain. Robin had joined Brook and Franky in the aquarium bar for a quiet game of cards as they attempted to catch up and make conversation. Everyone's minds were on Nami and Luffy.

In the medical room, Chopper had finished with Nami, and then left her to sleep, knowing the woman needed to be alone. He'd tended Luffy before leaving, and the whole while Nami lay under the sheet of the medical bed, the curtain pulled around her, staring blankly at the wall as pain hung in her chest.

Tears had started back up the moment Chopper left, and for another hour, she cried quietly to herself as she clutched the blankets to her chest and trembled. Her mind and body were mostly numb, but all she could think about was how she hadn't wanted the baby when she'd first found out, and then once things had seemed possible… seemed… hopeful… she lost it.

More tears leaked out of her eyes, and she buried her face against the pillow as her shoulders shook from her silent sobs.

* * *

><p>Luffy woke up to a pounding headache and the urge to go pee.<p>

Half conscious, mind blissfully blank except with the knowledge that he had to piss like a mother, he groaned and rolled out of the bed he was in, dimly aware that he was hooked up to an IV of saline solution. He ripped it out of his arm and stumbled to the bathroom, making a racket as he tried to find the door and became disorientated when the bathroom wasn't in the place that it should be…

He managed somehow and as always happens when one wakes up to the uncomfortable desire to empty the bladder, he became more and more aware of his surroundings. And realized thankfully that he was aiming correctly.

He was definitely… not in the boy's bathroom attached to the dorm. He was in the tiny bathroom in the medical office. No wonder he'd been lost for a second. And the pounding in his head hadn't subsided whatsoever and he reached up to touch his head and felt a bandage wrapped around his temple. And it was tender to the touch. In fact, his whole body was pretty sore. He glanced down and saw to his astonishment that he was bare chested, in his boxers and definitely mottled in bruises.

The memory of the night before came back in a flash of colors and images, so violent he had to reach out and grip the wall to keep from falling over. The Marines showed up… he and Nami escaped with the money and ran into the Shadow Watcher guy…

His heart tightened and his knees nearly gave out from under him as recollections of Nami getting the ever living shit beaten out of her flooded back to him, jacking up his heart rate and feeling like a knife was twisting through his chest.

"Nami…" he muttered, pushing off the wall and banging into the medical office, the door bouncing off the wall. In the darkness of the room, he could see the little cot that had been his… and a curtain pulled around the bed. He knew Nami was behind it.

"Nami!" he called, moving swiftly over to her and ripping the curtain back. He gave pause, his eyes drinking her in. She was wrapped in the bedsheets and he could just make out the collar of one of his tee shirts on her. Her body was curled into a ball, her face in her pillow and… she was trembling. And crying. He could practically smell her tears.

"Nami… hey…" he launched over the bed so that he was on the side her face was and leaned down, his chin against the edge of the mattress, "Are you alright? Are you hurt? Do I need to go get Chopper?" he reached out a hand and pushed her hair off her face, trying to look at her.

He knew though, without needing to ask her, about the baby. He could feel it, his Haki picking up all the nuances in her emotions.

* * *

><p>She managed to keep her teared-up eyes open as she gazed at his black and blue face as devastating sadness crashed over her. She closed her eyes and curled up tighter for a moment as a great sob racked her body. She wrestled it down and opened her eyes again.<p>

"Luffy...I...I'm sorry...I wasn't able to protect...the baby…" she whispered, her voice halting, thick with tears. "Chopper said… I miscarried it because of… of Watcher…" She curled up tighter and buried her face into the pillow. "I lost the baby," she wailed, her voice muffled now by the thick pillow. Tears sprang to her eyes anew and she couldn't hold back the sobs that shook her body.

* * *

><p>Her tears, the overwhelming sadness and pain he could feel radiating from her, was enough to send him over the edge. He didn't even have to hear the news out loud to know it was true. But hearing the words, seeing and feeling her wreck herself over it… it was hard to handle. Considering there was more blame on him than her. If he had been stronger, more alert, he wouldn't have been yanked into the water like that and wouldn't have left her helpless on the docks. The guilt burned through him like lava.<p>

"It's okay, Nami…" he whispered, crawling onto the bed with her and tugging her up out of the pillows so he could wrap his arms around her. She leaned into him, burying her face against his chest and if anything, he thought she was crying harder, her whole body consumed with trembles and shivers, her lungs stuttering to keep up. He threaded his hand through her hair at the back of her head, holding her to him as if he could stifle the quaking and squeeze her still.

As her tears soaked his skin, it felt like he was suffocating, his lungs threatening to collapse in on him, his heart palpating so hard in his chest he was certain this feeling was what people called heart break. He wasn't sure if it was hers, or his, but it was there, potent, painful, as bad as a blow to the chest with a fist filled with Haki. Like someone was crushing his organs inside him. He crushed tendrils of her hair in his fist, craving the physical outlet to his grief. There was… no baby. It was gone; all the happy little moments he had for the past week and a half, all the great adventures he was going to have with the baby, the little family they were going to make, gone. Ripped away from them by Watcher.

He was going to kill that guy.

Luffy swallowed hard, passed the lump in his throat as Zoro's words echoed through his head, words from a long time ago that had settled with him.

"_Don__'__t falter. If you do, how are we supposed to know what to believe in anymore?__"_

If there was ever a time he needed to pull himself together, it was now. Nami needed him to anchor her down. If he fell apart in front of her, she would have nothing to hold onto.

"It'll be okay," he said softly, his voice trembling slightly, "There was nothing you could've done differently. You stayed alive, so that's good. I wish… I wish I could've protected you better. I'll get stronger and then… then we can try again, okay?" he turned his face to pressed his lips against her temple, running his hand up and down her back, holding her tight to him, though still mindful of the beating she'd taken.

* * *

><p>Luffy joined her on the bed, pulling her into his body, and she couldn't hold it in anymore. She buried her face in his chest and cried her heart out, sliding her arms around him until she could cling to him.<p>

She hadn't been pregnant long, but it was long enough for her to feel hope for it… to feel like she was part of something much greater. She'd spent hours rubbing her flat stomach and thinking about what a baby girl or boy might be like, wrapped in a blanket in her arms. And now… there was nothing.

She felt empty, broken.

Luffy's words pierced through the fog in her brain. She could heart the tremble in his voice, could feel the tension in his body, and knew that he was sucking back his pain. He was being strong for her, and it made her heart squeeze with emotion. A strong emotion that she wasn't ready to name yet, not with this horror on her mind.

She was so focused on the sound of his voice that she almost missed the words he'd said. Try… again? He _wanted_ to try again? He wanted to try again with her. Her arms suddenly tightened around him, squeezing him as she was overcome with such a jumble of emotions that she was overwhelmed. Happiness, warmth, affection warred with the sadness and depression that sat so heavily on her chest.

She didn't want to go back to Redgrove. She wanted to be a coward and run away, as far as they could, but images of Moira and Lori with their daddy flashed in her mind, and she winced, guilt being added to the pot of emotions. She knew she hadn't been pushing to get to Redgrove as fast as possible, she knew that her fear of Watcher was the reason, but it was no excuse when little girls' lives hung in the line.

Finally, she lifted her head and gazed up at Luffy with red-rimmed eyes. "I don't want you to fight Watcher… I never want to see him again… I want to run away… but I can't… we can't… so please, please don't die. Don't let him beat you, Luffy, or I'll have nothing left." Her voice was, thick and trembly from her tears, cracked at the last line, and tears filled her eyes again before she stubbornly swallowed them.

"I don't feel like I have a future while Watcher is alive… I can't think… of things like trying again, not when I feel like I can't… help me get through this, Luffy…" she whispered, dropping her face into his chest again, her crying finally starting to ebb.

* * *

><p>Eventually, her hysterics calmed down to hiccups and stuttered breaths and still, he held onto her, his temple resting against hers and his hand running up and down her back hypnotically. The repetitive motion helped soothe his turbulent emotions until he no longer felt like he was going to rip the ship apart to outlet his pain and rage.<p>

She tipped her face up to look at him and he shifted so that he could look back at her, her cheeks wet and her eyes swollen. He managed to thumb some tears away before she buried her face back in his chest, her shoulders quaking as she took a deep breath to calm down.

"We're pirates," he told her, combing his fingers through her hair, "We don't run from anything, no matter how scared we are. This Watcher guy's got another thing coming if he thinks he's going to catch me off guard again. I'm going to kill him and then… well, we'll figure out the details later," he managed a smirk for her, even though his thoughts were steadily darkening as he ran over the details of his encounter with the Shadow Man.

He'd beaten the Shadow Shadow Fruit once before… but it could be safe to assume that every user was different. How would Watcher use the Shadow Shadow Fruit? What would his weakness be?

He shifted around on the bed until he could coerce her to lay down with him, her body tucked into the curve of his, sandwiched between him and the wall. It didn't really matter that they were on their ship; if anyone came through that door to mess with her, they had to go through him first.

"Watcher is a dead man," he whispered to her again, reassuringly, their noses only inches apart, "I'm going to kill him and save you. Period." He kissed the tip of her nose, then her mouth once, twice, then a third time, more passionately, a little desperately, craving the contact from her, like an assurance that she was whole and well.

He pulled back from her somewhat reluctantly, "Get some sleep," he told her, weaving an arm over her hip and pillowing the other under his head.

When he pulled back, Nami sighed, opening her eyes to look up at him. She reached out and threaded both her hands through his hair, scooting closer until she could press her body to his and lean up to kiss him, softly, slowly.

"Thank you, Luffy…"

She shifted around until she could press her hips and butt back into the crook of his body, clad only in a pair of panties and Luffy's shirt, and reached back around to tug his arm under her breasts. "You can sleep too, you know…" she added in a whisper. She was so exhausted as it was from this horrid day that even though a great part of her still ached, she was able to just let go just for a bit, and let sleep take her.

A/N:

Five words: Life Gets In The Way

Happy to be back!

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2015


	43. Chapter 43

~Chapter Forty Three~

They were a day away from Redgrove. One. Day. And Luffy was beside himself. Pacing. The captain had taken to pacing and everyone who watched this spectacle thought it was strange, out of character and knew that he was strung out.

"He wants this Watcher character," Sanji lit a cigarette, cupping his hand around the flame, "Who can blame him, really?" he took a drag, "Hey, Chopper, how's Nami-swan recovering?"

"She's been good, recovering steadily," Chopper swung from the railing, his little legs pumping back and forth, "She's resting in the medical ward."

"She's been quiet though," Tikka observed, "She only talks to Luffy. Understandable, naturally."

Sanji took another drag from his smoke, holding his breath for a second then letting it out in smoke rings.

"That's it! Meeting!" Luffy suddenly stopped his pacing around the grass and flung himself up to the top deck where the nakama were assembled, watching his strange, turbulent behavior, "Kitchen! Sanji! Make us something to eat!" he stormed passed them and into the kitchen, the door ricocheting off the wall. Everyone spared glances around at each other before shrugging and following the captain into the galley, seating themselves around the bar and table as Sanji worked the stove.

"Ow! Luffy! What's on your mind?" Franky came into the kitchen, trailing behind Robin and Zoro. Brook was the last one to meander his way in, his bones clicking as he walked.

"We are one day away from Redgrove," Luffy started, leaning forward in his chair, his expression dark and serious, "We are a day away from kicking the ever living shit out of this guy and freeing an entire island from his rule. We. Need. A. Plan. Watcher is mine, no one else touches him, understood?"

"Should I go get Nami for this discussion?" Chopper asked.

"No." Luffy replied, offering no further explanation, but his tone was enough that no one questioned his decision to leave Nami out of this. She didn't need the stress or knowing what they were going to do.

"We should separate into teams," Usopp suggested, "A team to beat up the henchman and Watcher and a team to help the villagers."

Luffy nodded, "See, that's why I keep you around, Usopp." He grinned a little, "So, that's means I'll take a team to storm this bastard's house and a team will stay in the village and… how can we cure the poison from their food and water?"

"I have the antidote all set, Luffy!" Chopper added, "I worked with the extras you gave me a few weeks back. I designed them to pour into the waterways and it will cancel out the poison in the water and when the villagers drink the water, it will cancel the poison in their bodies."

"Perfect! What about the food?" Luffy asked and eyes turned to Sanji, naturally. The cook knew the most about food.

Sanji snuffed his cigarette in the ash tray on the counter and served a few dishes of hors d'œuvres, "Food takes years to grow. It could be a long time before the food is no longer contaminated."

"Well, like most antidotes, once you've been exposed and cured from a poison, your body builds up antibodies to fight the poison. If the villagers drink enough of the water in comparison to food consumption, they should be alright," Chopper reasoned, "But I can show the local doctors my notes on creating the antidote so they can cure the people when we aren't there anymore."

"Good. Now…" Luffy searched his brain for something else, something that he knew was important. His eyes bounced around the room and he ate the appetizers to help his thoughts, "Right! The brothels! Watcher controls the brothels. We need those kids out. We're gonna need a team for that…"

"I got it, Luffy! What if Brook, Robin and Franky handle the brothels, Sanji, me and Chopper handle the village and you, Tikka and Zoro storm the fort?" Usopp suggested, "Teams of three. Fair enough, right?"

Luffy glanced at the rest of the nakama, "Any objections?"

General murmurs of agreement went around and he grinned, slamming his fist into the palm of his hand, "Settled then! This time tomorrow, we are going to rage a war!" he snagged a plate and some food to pile on it, "Alright, I'm taking this to Nami. Meeting's over," he stuffed a kabob in his cheek and high tailed it out of the kitchen, waving over his shoulder.

* * *

><p>Franky watched Luffy as the man slammed out of the galley, a curious expression on his face. Robin, sitting nearby, leaning over with a question in her expression. Glancing at her, he quickly looked away and back to his dinner plate.<p>

"Nothing, just noticing that Luffy is oddly… together."

"I know what you mean," Robin replied in her calm, scholarly tone. "He is organizing. Preparing. Luffy never prepares, rather, he barges in and hopes for the best…" She cut off a portion of her steak and delicately raised it to her mouth as she spoke, then popped it in. Franky caught himself watching her out of the corner of his eye and had to shake himself out of the daze only this infuriating woman seemed to put him in.

"Ow! It's because our captain's in love!" Franky suddenly exclaimed, and sudden silence fell over the dining hall. Every head turned towards him with a shocked and somewhat disgusted expression, minus Robin, Tikka, and Chopper, two of which have already figured that out, and the other having no opinion on the matter of love with his nakama.

"Love?! He will never love Nami the way I love-" his words were abruptly cut off when Tikka, her face scary dark with annoyance, had swiftly knocked him head over heal with the butt of her sword to the back of his head. Smoke practically came from her nostrils as she loomed over the cook.

"Don't diss this romance! It's so freaking ADORABLE! I ship it SO HARD!" Tikka hollered, and everyone glanced at each other with terrified expressions, except for Robin, who was chuckling into her napkin. Franky burst into dramatic tears, covering his face with his arm. Zoro dropped his face into a hand and shook it sadly at his drama-loving mate.

"Oh Tikka-baby! You said it true! I'm not crying, you jackasses. OH! It's such a beautiful romance!" Franky bawled in his dramatic way, then quickly recovered when Robin started laughing more. He sat up and glared down at her, towering over her much thinner frame. "OW! Don't laugh at me!"

"Luffy has been more serious about this Watcher guy than any other opponent he's faced. He's unusually thought-out about this mission. It doesn't matter what his motives are, we make sure it gets done." Zoro interjected in his serious voice, head down, eyes gleaming with the excitement of battle and of conviction for his captain.

"Yohohoho! This should be fun! My skin is crawling just thinking about it! Not that I have skin…" Brook laughed and the mood at the table lightened instantly. "By the way, Tikka-san," Brook asked.

Tikka glanced up from her plate expectantly, mouth full of food. Everyone else at the table stiffened, waiting for the question they all knew was coming except her…

"May I see your panties?" Brook asked her.

She spit out all the food in her mouth, much to the gross delight of a few people at the table who laughed at her reaction. She coughed. Zoro thwapped her on the back a couple of times until she got her breathing under control, "Is this guy for real?" she asked breathlessly, jabbing her thumb at Brook.

Everyone nodded.

Her yellow hawk eyes shifted around the table, then back to Brook and she noticed Zoro drop his head in his hands in defeat as her expression melted from shock to mischief, "Maybe later, pumpkin," she winked at the skeleton.

Brook stared at her – she had the distinct impression that if he could, he'd be blinking at her blankly right now – before he fell out of his chair with a nose bleed. Laughter erupted at the table and the mood continued to escalate upwards as everyone dug into their meals.

* * *

><p>Down in the medical office, Luffy burst into the door. Nami had pretty much taken over this room, on Doctor Chopper's orders for bed rest for a couple of days. He'd left Luffy in charge to make sure she followed every order to the tee and Luffy took that job very seriously.<p>

"Wifey!" he exclaimed, kicking the door shut behind him, "I brought you some food! Hungry?" he bounced over to the bed, his spirits lifted after that meeting and the jubilant attitude a good way to blow off some steam at how violent he was feeling towards the shadow bastard he was about the maim in only a few hours, "How do you feel?" he asked, setting the plate down on the table next to the bed and crawling up to join her. He blew a raspberry against her cheek.

Luffy's voice made her jump, sitting up on the doctors bed. Her face flushed and she shot out an angry, "It was not official, Luffy!" Which, he promptly ignored.

Nami sighed and rolled her eyes at him, then crawled away from his raspberry with a scrunched up face, holding back a small chuckle-finally, she felt like her chest was lose enough to laugh again-and pushing at his face. "You mean, you brought yourself food," Nami joked, since most of the time he couldn't keep from eating her food that she didn't eat fast enough. Granted, he'd still left her a lot.

His face made her think of Watcher, and that made her think of how close her confrontation with the man was. She felt a cold jab of fear slice through her stomach, chilling her skin into goosebumps. Her face fell from the half-amusement it had featured just a moment before, and she looked away from her captain and down to the food, studiously avoiding the topic of Watcher.

Looking down at the food, she could see her stomach out of her peripheral vision, and another stab of pain went through her heart, and her face tightened a moment as her hand curled over her bell. But just as quickly, she reached out for the food and shut down her mind long enough to focus on eating.

"Thank you, for the food," she added. "Tonight I'm going to sleep in the dormitory. I don't want to sleep in this… medical room any longer. I feel broken in here, like I still need to be fixed. So… I'm declaring myself fine." Her voice was determined, her brows furrowed as she munched on the dinner roll.

* * *

><p>He snatched a kabob from her plate – one of the six he managed to pile on it – and sat cross-legged at the end of her bed, watching her. While he often saw the world in black and white, just because he chose to not acknowledge the shades of gray didn't mean that he didn't see them. He knew he wasn't as smart as Nami or Robin, but he wasn't stupid either. He noticed the change in her demeanor, the way her face fell and her shoulders tensed up. She was just as stressed out about being less than a day away from total carnage on Redgrove.<p>

And… while she might think that she was fine, he knew she was still grieving. The worst part was that he didn't know how to help her because he was just as upset, just… better at holding up. He'd felt like this a few weeks after Ace's death too; Silvers Rayleigh told him it was shock and it was simply how he dealt with it, by overcompensating on insanity, which, Luffy normally had excess amounts of anyway.

"That's a good idea," he replied, snapping his hand out and stealing a roll of her plate as well, "Ya know, let's get outta here now. Come on," he jumped off the bed, grabbed her dinner with one hand and her hand with the other and all but dragged her out of the bed and out of the medical office. Being cooped up in that place for days like she'd been… well, it might be good for her to have bed rest, but he knew that he'd go nuts if he was confined to a single room for that long. He was sure she felt the same.

"This way!" he led her down the deck, down the stairs to the grassy patch smack dab in the middle of the ship and over to the swing that was there. He placed her plate of grub on the little table and guided her over to the swing's seat, "Sit. I'll push you."

Once she was settled, he darted around the swing, grabbed the edges of the seat and took a few steps back. Part of him itched to launch her, just to hear her scream, but know that she was safe, but the more reasonable part of him was aware that she was still recovering from some pretty serious injuries. He still had a bandage over his eye where his head smashed into the docks from Watcher.

He let the swing go and it arched up and back and he laid his hands on the small of her back to give her another gentle shove. He repeated this until she was high enough and just kept contact with her to keep up the momentum… and because he wanted to keep touching her.

After a couple of minutes, he pulled the swing to a abrupt stop, digging his heels in a little and leaning over her, his hands on the chains. He smirked and kissed her mouth, his hat falling off his head and landing in her lap.

* * *

><p>As Luffy dragged her out of the doctors office, she didn't put up much of a resistance. She WAS sick of the room, and being outside as Luffy took off for the grassy deck, made her feel… refreshed.<p>

She took a big breath of air and let it out slowly, feeling some of her negative thoughts go out with it. Luffy had a grin on his face and the sun was shinning so brightly that for the moment, she shoved thoughts of Watcher under the rug, and just try to smile a little.

After all, being mopey was definitely not her style.

Luffy directed her to sit on the swing, and she did so with caution, glancing back at him with a suspicious glare, but when he pushed her, it was gentle. Normally, Luffy, Chopper, and Usopp tried to launch each other the furthest on this swing, and once or twice they'd tricked Zoro and Brook to sit on it. For Brook, since he was so light, it had meant a dip in the ocean.

"Luffy… I've been thinking-" Nami started. but mid-sentence Luffy pulled the swing to a stop and laid a kiss on her from behind, leaning so far that his hat fell into her lap. An unexpected smile tugged at her lips, and a surge of warmth spread through her. Her fingers curled around the edges of his hat as she tilted her head back a little more and kissed him back, her eyes falling closed.

Her heart warmed, and a part of her knew that she wasn't going to be able to deny her feelings for Luffy any longer. Somehow, he'd some to mean so much more to her than a crush of a booty call. He'd come to mean a lot to her…

She broke the kiss, pulling back a little and gazing up at him with wavering eyes. "Luffy…" she began, her voice low, meant for his ears only. "I think… this is for the best. It hurts me greatly, and if I had the power to change what happened, I would, but… I also know that life would be much better if I didn't have a child until _after_ you became the Pirate King."

She bit her lip as she stared up at him, wondering if he would accept that, or if it would make him angry at all... Her fingers tightened around his straw hat.

* * *

><p>He searched her face as she spoke, her voice low. He could tell she put a lot of thought into this because of the tone of her voice, so he didn't say anything at first. It made sense, he supposed, to wait to have babies until after he became the Pirate King. That way, there wouldn't be any choice in the matter; he could be a dad and the King of the Pirates. And once he'd achieved that status, he was certain that no one would fuck with him.<p>

"It could be a long time before I'm King of the Pirates," he replied to her, rocking the swing back and forth slightly, "But if you wanna wait, that's cool with me. It's like, your deal," he waved his hand in the general direction of her stomach, "I just help with the process."

Speaking of which…

"Wait… does this mean we can't… _do it_?" he whispered the last words like it was a naughty thing, like getting his hand caught in Sanji's fridge, "Because I might be less willing to wait if it means we, ya know…" he had a little grin on his face, but it was accompanied by a slight flush staining his cheeks.

* * *

><p>She blanched a little, and the thought of going without sex for the next… three years? The thought made a shiver of dread run up and down her spine and she shuddered a little below him. "God no. We just gotta be careful… use protection." She flushed and looked away from him, tilting her head just so to reveal her white throat, practically unharmed from Watcher's attack.<p>

She glanced sideways at his wall muscled body and the thought of sex made her body go warm and pliant. She bit her lip and turned her head back to openly ogle him, her eyes hot. She smiled slowly, the released his hat in her lap and reached out to place her finger over his lips, leaning back until her back was pressed against his stomach, the heat of his body sending a shiver down her spine.

"I would never be able to wait that long, idiot… You're too irresistible, even though you can be a baka." She smirked playfully and her finger trailed down his chin, over his neck, and then down his throat. Only when he finger had passed his navel did she pull it back, then settle her hand back on her lap, gripping his hat.

A/N:

Final Thought from Tikka: I'M GOING TO START A LUFFY/NAMI FAN-CLUB WHO IS WITH ME?

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2015


	44. Chapter 44

~Chapter Forty-Four~

_***** LIME WARNING *****_

_**If you don**__**'**__**t like it, you**__**'**__**re lying**_

"_I might be a real bad boy__… __but baby I__'__m a real good man__…"_~Tim McGraw

She openly oogled him.

Oogled. Him.

She gave him those sexy eyes and the smile wiped from his face so fast as his lips parted and she trailed a single finger over his lips, his chin, down his throat and over his chest. The anticipation built in his stomach as she went further and further south until she pulled her hand away at the last possible second.

He curled his fist into her coppery hair and tipped her head back to lay one on her, a scorching kiss typically reserved for a heated exchange, "You owe me from the other night," he remembered, "I'd like to cash that in now," he spun the swing around and pulled her out of it. He threw her over his shoulder like a barbarian - much to her shouts and protests - and marched her right up to the mapping room, slammed the door open and nothing short of tossed her onto the mattress in the corner where she'd pass out from time to time.

It felt a little like he was taking her prisoner.

"Don't move," he instructed her, "I'll be right back," he whipped out the door again and was halfway through shutting it behind him when he popped his head back in and gave her a heated look, "Be naked by the time I get back," and with that, the door clicked shut.

* * *

><p>One minute, she was enjoying the nice day on the swing set, and then next, she was in the library and cartographers room, dumped on the mattress she sometimes used when a map had her working late into the night.<p>

She was still trying to catch up when he was already heading to the door, and she whipped around to stare at him when he demanded she be naked when he get back.

He was… serious. He thought he could just demand she be naked and that she'd comply. Well! He had another thing coming! She had no intentions of hurrying things. Turning her back to the door, she started to undress. Slowly.

With each garment that she pulled off, she felt excitement rising in her chest, bubbling through her blood. Her cheeks were red, and she wondering if there were finally going to have sex… both of them sober. The idea was so heady she had to put a hand out to steady herself.

Sex was definitely a great way to keep her from thinking about the more depressing things in her life right now…

* * *

><p>He nothing short of ran around the ship, gathering blankets and pillows from the dorms and the extras in the closets. He planned on holing her up in that room all night; he didn't even care what they did. Well, lies, his blood was pounding at the idea of sexual endeavors, but part of him was okay with just being with her all night. Something about the idea was therapeutic, especially the night before a huge fight.<p>

As he raced around deck, he was unaware of the audience that had relocated from the kitchen after dinner to various locations around the ship. Zoro, Tikka, Chopper and Robin were playing a card game while Usopp and Franky were tinkering around with the ship somewhere. Chopper glanced up when Luffy darted across the upper deck, a mound of blankets wrapped in his arms.

"What's Luffy running around with all those blankets for?" he wondered idly.

Tikka drew a card casually, not lifting her eyes, "Booty call, guaranteed," she replied calmly, "Oh look, I got an ace of clubs."

Zoro spit out his drink, coughing and choking. Robin grew an arm out of his back and thwapped him a good one to clear his lungs, all the while stifling a smile as Chopper made a slightly shocked, slightly disgusted face.

"Zoro, my love, you should really be more carefully," Tikka chastised him with a tsk, "Drink slowly. It's your turn, by the way."

"You are shameless," he told her with a little gasp and cough. All that did was earn him a secretive little smirk as he drew a card from the deck.

Luffy barged back into the cartographer room, out of breath and carrying more blankets than the average person should have been able to. He dumped them all onto the mattress willy nilly.

* * *

><p>By the time Luffy barged back into the room, she was down to her panties, her back to him, her arms crossed over her breasts. If he wanted her to be naked, he was going to have to put at least a little effort into it. Mainly...the panties. She glanced over her shoulder at him, and rolled her eyes at the pillows and blankets he'd grabbed. It looked like he planned on bedding a million women, rather than just her. He had enough pillows to drown in.<p>

"I hope that's enough," she said jokingly, her eyes shinning with amusement and heat as she looked at him over her shoulder, nude to him except for her underwear.

* * *

><p>He rubbed the back of his neck, examining the mattress with the pile of blankets and pillow on them when he heard Nami ask if that would be enough. He didn't look up at her as he contemplated seriously, "I'm not sure… do you think I should go… get… more…" he glanced up at her and his heart dropped somewhere in the region of his stomach.<p>

He'd forgotten in his haste to find blankets that he demanded she be naked by the time he got back. And she'd come damned close, shooting him a look over her shoulder, bare backed and clad in only her sparse panties that hardly covered the main event. He suddenly felt overdressed.

A shit-eating grin spread across his face, mingling with the hot look in his eyes as he gave her a once over. In one fluid motion, he peeled his shirt off and tossed it aside before stretching his arm and snatching her by the nape of her neck and tugging her closer to him until their bodies were flush. It was exhilarating to feel hot skin against hot skin and he reveled in the feel of it for a second before falling backwards onto the mattress, taking her with him.

It was like drowning in linens. He chuckled and rolled her over so that he could adjust the amount of blankets and pillows he had on the bed. He successfully got the pillows lined up at the top of the bed and the blankets… well, they were just everywhere, wrapped around his ankles, tangled around his legs. He managed to kick most of them off before grabbing just the one he stole from his bed in the dorm and pulled it up over the two of them, trapping them under the covers with his body over hers.

"I thought I told you to be naked when I got back…" he rumbled, ducking his head to press his mouth against her neck. Just the feel of her against him, the anticipation that this was going to lead to sex he remembered, had his stomach flipping over and his heart pounding in the pit of his stomach. He skated a hand up over her hip and ribs to palm her breast, flicking her thumb over the peak.

* * *

><p>Even though they'd been more than intimate with each other, even since the drunk incident, this still felt… like the first time between them. She blushed, feeling a little flustered over what was very clearly about to happen. Luffy finally arranged the pillows and blankets, and covered her body with his. Both of them were naked from the waist up, and the feel of his skin against her own was exciting and wonderful.<p>

He kissed her neck, rumbling about how she'd disobeyed him, while his hand skirted up her hip and side until he could cup her breasts with his hand. She arched her back, pressing herself closer to him as her head fell to the side to give him better access to her neck.

Fairly soon, she had no more thoughts in her head but those of Luffy. She was surrounded by his body, his scent, and it was wonderful. She reached up to grasps his hips, sliding her fingers over his skin and along the edges of his pants. Smirking, she slid her fingers inside the fabric and worked her fingers between them until she found the button. With a quick flick of her fingers, she undid his pants and pushed insistently at them.

"I decided you had to work to get me naked… ust like I'm working to get these pants off of you," she told him in a sweet voice, yet her tone was deepened by lust as she shivered from the feeling of his thumb feathering over her breast. She let out a small breathless sigh, her eyes darkening to a molten brown. She smiled up at him suggestively, and released his pants-he could kick them off himself-to instead run her fingers up his bare back, enjoying the sensation of skin to skin.

* * *

><p>Something about the atmosphere of this situation had his nerves jangling and his hands tempted to tremble. Was this nervousness he was feeling? He never felt nervous over anything; and yet, here he was, getting tingly thinking about getting sexy with Nami. It was silliness, that's what it was. They'd done this before; it was hardly different except, well, he wasn't belligerent out of his mind.<p>

He supposed that that time he hadn't really had much of a chance to be nervous and now it was all catching up with him.

He chuckled at her as she undid the button of his shorts and pushed them off his hips. He kicked them off his ankles and down to the end of the mattress and plucked the seam of her panties, "This… is hardly considered work, woman," he grinned. Her fingertips over his skin were making goosebumps break out.

He dragged his mouth away from her neck and over her collarbone, across her breasts and down along her ribs and stomach until he could slide his body down and tug the underwear off her hips and down her long legs. He discarded them somewhere in the abyss that was the end of the bed and tickled her toes, laughing when she lashed out at him with her feet. He snatched her ankles and yanked her towards him and under him again. He braced his body weight on his forearm by her head and traced the tip of his finger over her lips.

"You're making me really nervous…" he voiced in a whisper, watching his finger on her mouth. They were both completely naked now – he'd kicked off his boxers with his shorts – and the last two times they'd both been in this situation had been hot, mindless encounters. Now… it was a totally different feeling that he didn't know how to interpret, "Like… I don't know what I'm supposed to do now that I've got you naked…"

He trailed his finger from her lips along her jawline and up to her ear, tracing around the edge of it before threading his hand through her hair. Then, he kissed her, softly at first, then a little harder, a little more deeply, his tongue slipping between her lips to taste her.

"Tell me what you want, Nami…" he pulled back enough to speak against her mouth, his breath coming a little quicker now as his heart rate sped up.

* * *

><p>Luffy started kissing down her body, and Nami stretched lavishly beneath him, her gorgeous body — which she worked hard on, being a famous pirate and everything — spread out for him like a sacrifice. As his hands got to her hips, he started dragging her panties off, and she suddenly squirmed below him, her face hot, suddenly shy to be fully nude before him.<p>

She'd been drunk the last time she'd done this,and so hadn't really been bashful, but now… to be fully nude with him, and not half-masked by water and steam in a shower, it totally made her feel vulnerable to him somehow. Vulnerable, but still turned on, so it was a confusing sort of feeling.

He tickled, and she retaliated in king, shooting him a nasty glare and kicking for his face with her foot, which he deftly caught and then started dragging her towards him, making Nami's eyes widen in surprise, her back arching and her breasts thrust out.

"Luffy!" she growled at him, but already he'd blanketed her with his now naked body, and the sensation made her mute as her breath hitched and heat flushed through her body. She could feel the corded ridges of his hips, abs, and pecs against her softer flesh. It felt...amazing.

"I'm making you nervous? You don't know what to do?" she asked him with a laugh and a wicked light in her eyes. He kissed her, and she slid her hands up to tunnel through his hair, arching her back and pressing her stomach against him, feeling his hot length against her hip. It made liquid heat pool between her legs, and her breaths started to quicken.

"I want…"she paused, looking up at him with hot, glinting eyes before a slow grin crept up her face.

Moving swiftly, knowing he'd be too caught off guard to react, Nami shifted her hip and pushed up on the same shoulder at the same time, forcing him onto his back as she rolled them over, slinging her leg to kneel over him.

"I want to touch you…" she murmured, her eyes breaking away from him face and wandering lower, over his chest and ridged abdomen. Excitement pumped through her blood, and a shiver raced down her spine. Her fingers followed the path of her eyes, until she scooted down and squished his member between her breasts, provocatively sliding down, all the while caressing him with the mounds.

Once she'd slid down far enough, she braced herself up with her arms and lowered her head to take him into her mouth, swirling her tongue around him as one hand went to curl around his base. She moaned, her desire mounting at the feel of his hot body beneath hers, and the vibration of the sound travelled up the shaft.

* * *

><p>She dominated him, flipping them over so that she was posed above him and the action had his stomach erupting into excited butterflies. She had this wicked look about her, a mischievous smirk that made his blood race. Nami… was super fun when she was being a devil, situation notwithstanding.<p>

She slid down him, murmuring that she wanted to touch him and he couldn't believe that he could get more excited, but he did, his lungs skipping. On her way down his body, she slid his cock between her fantastic breasts and it was so bizarre and amazing that he half-laughed, half-groaned, leaning up on one elbow to watch her. That is… until she dropped her head and took him into her mouth. He flopped back down against the pillows and gripped her hair with one of his hands.

"God, I like that…" he told her, his voice a breathy rumble as she worked him. Her throaty moan sent a vibration right through him and up his spine and he knew he wasn't going to last long like this. She was the expert with that mouth and she knew just how to send him over the edge.

And over the edge he went, with a harsh rasp of her name and his hips jacked up off the mattress. He'd been so pent up for days that it felt like forever before he came back down again, his heart on overdrive and his lungs gasping. He very nearly dragged her up over him by her hair and kissed her hard, his lust canceling out the previous feeling that his nerves were jumping out of his skin.

He flipped them over again and nibbled the edge of her ear with his teeth, part of him feeling particularly playful while the other part of him wanted to hear her beg his name. He wanted to hear the change in pitch; from a scolding "Luffy!" to a sexy drawl, all in the same breath.

He chuckled wickedly, a little breathlessly and did something he knew she would deem extremely gross; he licked her face and blew a raspberry against the side of her neck, laughing under his breath. At the same time, he brought his hand up to touch her and his breath caught at how wet she was. He shifted down her body until he could cock one of her knees up and claim her with his mouth, working her over with his hand and mouth like she had to him.

* * *

><p>"Luffy, gross!" she slugged him, hard, but he was a rubber man and her strength would barely bother him. She tried to slither away from him, but he grabbed her legs and cocked one knee open, his head plunging down and making her whole body go wild with sudden feeling.<p>

Her back arched and she moaned, her hips shifting subtly from the pleasure shooting through her. His tongue felt amazing, and was amazingly agile, rocking her world as she gripped the sheet below them.

"Luuufffyy…" she said in a slow, breathless gasp, her head tilting back, her eyes closed. But it was too late, he forced her over the edge, and she shouted his name, her hips bucking a little. Her whole body trembled a little, and then she drifted back down, going limp into the sheet and letting out a sigh.

"You have… an awesome tongue, Luffy…" she murmured to him, a smile in her voice as she shifted and squirmed, pushing herself up on her arms to gaze across at him, her hair falling across her forehead.

Her eyes flickered over his glorious naked body, nibbling on her lower lip. Damn, he was pretty sexy. Since his training, he'd gotten even more buff, filling out as an adult… a sexy MAN, rather than a boy…

Her eyes flickered up to his, and she smiled slowly, wolfishly, and crooked a finger at him.

* * *

><p>That… was exactly the reaction he was looking for. Violent Nami… sexy Nami. He fucking loved it.<p>

She pushed his head away, his cue to release her and crossed his arms over her hips and propped his chin on his hands to glance at her. Her hair fell forward over her shoulder a little and into her eyes, aiding her in the sexiness look she shot him, her molten maroon eyes flickering over him, stopping his heart and sending a jolt through him.

She smirked, a hungry, wolfish look about her and crooked a single finger at him, jacking his already increased blood pressure as a thrill went through him. He matched her grin, his dark hair falling into his eyes a little as he shifted and crawled over her again, just a touch of crazy creeping into his expression, one that promised a night of total satisfaction.

"Oh, hell yeah…" he growled, dropping his body weight to his forearms and pinning her to the mattress with his body. He was hyper sensitive to touch now and the feel of her flushed and heat skin against his was sublime torture at best. He reached down and pushed her knee up and out to the side so that her hips completely cradled his and his breath came out in a hiss between his teeth to feel the head of his cock slide against her slick heat.

"Please let me fuck you…" he all but gasped the words out, "I promise I'll be good…"

A/N:

I'm trying REAL hard to finish this, guys. It's been a long-ass journey.

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2015


	45. Chapter 45

~Chapter Forty-Five~

_*****LEMON WARNING*****_

_**Finally, right?**_

Her heart went into overdrive as he blanketed her and cocked her knee up, aligning them perfectly. She gasped, going still, gazing up at him with a hot agony on her face. She bit her lip, because let's face it, she was in love with this man. She couldn't deny him her body by any means.

She arched her back, tilting her hips enough to guide the head of his cock to where it needed to be, and pulled him inside with her hands on his hips, moaning low and relinquishing her control of his hips, lifting her arms above her body and splaying herself out below him as she gave him control of the pace, tilting her hips eagerly.

"Yessss…" she hissed lowly, her eye molten with desire as the pleasure of him filling her coursed through her blood and made her body sing from the delicious friction, the stretch. It was tight, but not quite painful. It was exquisite. "Luffy, you feel amazing…" she breathing, reaching up to yank his head down and capture his lips with her own, sliding her tongue through his lips and kissing him with all the heat of her excitement.

* * *

><p>There was something about the way she looked at him; it was brief and it was mostly pushed to the back burner of his mind when she grabbed his hips and guided him inside her; but it was there and for that one heartbeat, it rocked him to his core. It was like… something bittersweet and painful and shimmering and he didn't know what to make of it. It seemed like fear and resignation, like a sorta "oh, just fuck it all to hell" kinda attitude, something she couldn't stop or deny. He could feel it.<p>

Of course, most of his sensibility flew right out the window when she thrust her hips up and took him in to the hilt and his swore under his breath at the pure sensation of her hot core wrapping around him, pulling at him like a tight little glove. And her whole demeanor changed anyway to wanton and pliant; she stretched out under him like a sacrifice and he used that opportunity to snatch her wrists with one hand and pin her down.

She moaned his name and tugged him up to kiss him hard and he matched her fervor at the same time as he rocked his hips against hers, going on instinct and sensation. This felt absolutely incredible; nothing before it even came close. He could feel her over every single inch of him and it was hot and deep and wet and comfortable and he never wanted to leave.

He stole his mouth away from hers and dipped his head to capture her breast in his mouth, his hips creating a furious yet sensual rhythm. Hell, when you're made of rubber, anything is possible.

* * *

><p>Her ability to think was slowly being robbed of her as his hips created a sensual rhythm that stole her breath. All that was left was sensation, and it was more than she'd ever felt in her life. Her senses had definitely been dulled that drunken night of frivolity. Her whole body was attune to his, and with each thrust of his narrow hips, pleasure shot up through her body.<p>

His lips moved down to her breast, and she arched her back, offering to him her flesh as she clung to his shoulders and hair, at the same time holding him to her body. Meanwhile, she tilting her hips to take him deeper, pulling her legs back to increase the tightness and friction, and her head spun with the pleasure and heat that swirled in her stomach.

Wanting more, wanting to drive Luffy mad with pleasure like he was doing to her, Nami switched the tables on them again. She rolled them over until she was on top, shuddering as the shift pressed their bodies together and inadvertently grinding theirs hips against one another. She smirked down at him, her hair mussed and tousled around her head.

"I want a ride too," she purred to him huskily and started undulating her hips, taking him deep insider her. She got creative with the way her hips moved, rotating them around until she was riding his cock like a bull riding, working it with her hips. Her she braced herself with her hands on his chest, the position arching her back and thrusting her breasts towards him.

The motion soon had her panting, her cheeks flushed, and her eyes glowing with excitement. Becoming even bolder, Nami increased the pace, leaning down to capture his lips with hers and kiss him mindless as her body tightened around his.

* * *

><p>She turned the tables on them and flipped them over again until she was positioned on top of him and it was a completely different feeling. It was deeper, tighter. He liked it much better.<p>

He flopped his head back against the pillows and let her do her thing, his hands settling on her hips. Mostly, he allowed her to control the pace, but every now and again, he dig his fingertips into her hips and thrust up into her a little harder, a little deeper. Every time it would send a rush up his spine and his whole body would tense.

He couldn't believe he didn't remember this from their one drunken night together. His heart was ready to burst out of his chest and his whole body felt like it was thrumming and alive and hyper aware of her. She braced her hands against his chest and the action had her arching her back and bringing her amazing rack within range. He leaned up, curling a hand around her shoulders and captured one in his mouth, his hand coming up to thumb over the other. His body flushed when she made those little sexy sounds that he loved so much.

She leaned down to kiss him senseless and her body tightened around him, gripping him and he groaned against her mouth, feeling that telltale trembling throughout his body churning right down to his stomach. He pulled at her hips harder, taking the control away from her briefly. God, it felt so good… if they kept this up…

"Nami… I think…" he practically panted, sliding his hands around to her ass and digging his fingers into the soft flesh.

* * *

><p>She may not be the most experienced lover in the world, but Luffy was pretty easy to read, and she could tell when he was getting close. His muscles were tight, his expression harsh. His fingers dug into the flesh of her ass, urging her on.<p>

Smirking at him, her hair falling around her face in red tumbles, she pushed herself upright again, reached behind her to grab his hand, and removed it from her ass, pulling his hand around to the front. "If you're so insistent, then I'm going to need a little help…" she purred to him, guiding his hand up her thigh, over her hip, and then down to where her body crave his touch the most.

The instant his hand made contact with her hot flesh, she let out a moan, her body tightening around Luffy as she picked up the pace of her hips. She kept her hand over his, guiding him to that sweet spot of hers, and the moment he found it, she tumbled over the edge.

A cry was ripped from her throat as her world shattered into a million pieces. Her body clamped down on Luffy, spasms of pleasure making her hips jerk and her back arch provocatively. She gasped his name, falling forward and catching herself with her hands on either side of his face, and her eyes, simmering with heat, flashed open to see that he was in a similar state.

She knew she she had 2.2 seconds until Luffy's own orgasm hit him. In a swift and smooth motion, as Luffy's body tightened under her, she suddenly dismounted off of him, rolling onto her side. Her own body was still rippling with pleasure from the aftershocks of her climax, and she kept Luffy's hand pressed between her legs as her other hand shot out and wrapped around his shaft, pumping gently as she made sure he enjoyed his climax to the end, a wicked grin lighting her features.

Within seconds, both of them were panting and coming down down from pleasure highs, her hand resting on his hip and her hand resting between her thighs. She was curled up on her side facing him, her legs curled up around his hand as she practically trembled from the after-effects of their bed-play.

"You better remember it this time, Luffy…" she finally murmured breathlessly to him, her expression a mixture of happiness, exhaustion, amusement, and complete and utter smug satisfaction.

* * *

><p>He would have done anything she asked of him in that moment. She could have told him to jump off the side of the boat and drown himself in the ocean and he would have, without a second thought. He was completely at her mercy, completely under her spell. She had him feeling things he didn't know he was capable of feeling. Jolts of electricity, tingles and numbness skated up and down his body. He was more turned on than he'd ever been in his life.<p>

She grabbed his hand and guided it around until she pressed the tips of his fingers against her flesh. God, it rocked his world when she took control like that and let him know exactly what she liked. She shifted his hand and he caressed his fingers against her until she gasped his name and he knew she was over the edge. Her whole body tensed and tightened and spasmed and he gasped at the sensation, digging into her hips and unconsciously pushing her deeper against him because it felt so damned good…

He was on the cusp when suddenly, she rolled off him and he barely had time to protest and panic before her hand came up to wrap around him and pump once… twice…

The world shattered, colors exploded and her name tumbled from his lips in a harsh sound. His hips bowed off the bed and he gripped the sheets in his hands, desperate to hold onto something, anything to keep him anchored down.

He came down from the heavens, his chest heaving, a thin coating of perspiration over his brow. He turned his head to glance at Nami when she spoke to him and he grinned a little, but it was heavily compromised by the sudden post-coital exhaustion that swept through him. He reached out and laid his free hand against her cheek.

"Oh, I remember all right," he told her before sliding his hand down to wrap his fingers around the nape of her neck and pull her in for a kiss, slow and devastating. Then, he leaned an arm back and fished around for his boxers to wipe himself down before chucking them across the room and wrapping his body around her, her ass pressed right into the dip in his hips, his face against the back of her neck. His arm was draped over her waist and he reached up with a little playful growl and grabbed a handful of her breast.

"Snuggle with me," he demanded, releasing her breast and settling his hand over her stomach.

A/N:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2015


	46. Chapter 46

~Chapter Forty-Six~

"_Always when I see you darling, you're up in the clouds above. And baby tonight she got me so damn high, that I think this could be love.__"_~Bag Raiders

He woke up some time later, his stomach rumbling. He glanced out the window first to see that it was dark and then shifted his eyes to the clock to see that it was closer to ten o' clock. He stretched gently, careful not to disturb Nami, still tucked up against him. God, she absolutely amazed him. He gave her a soft squeeze then rolled off the mattress. After pulling his shorts on and slipping into his sandals, he left his hat next to her on the mattress and padded out of the library/cartographer room and towards the kitchen to see if he could scrounge anything to eat.

All that he yielded were some ripe tangerines, but he supposed those would do and he took them with him across the Sunny to the lion figurehead; his haunt. He was halfway through peeling the second mikan when it occurred to him like a punch in the gut that he was only hours away from a huge fight.

A fight that determined whether or not Nami was freed.

A fight to kill that Watcher bastard for hurting her and taking away their baby.

Luffy crushed the tangerine in his hand, juice oozing out and covering his fist and dripping to the lion head. That bastard… he was going to pay with his blood.

Knowing he wasn't going to be able to sleep now, Luffy chucked the dead mikan into the ocean, the other four that he grabbed off the counter untouched next to him. He wasn't really hungry anymore.

After another moment of violent, turbulent thoughts, he picked up a tangerine and rolled it around in his palms. It was oddly therapeutic and it made him think of Nami, bringing his destructive thoughts down a notch or two as he contemplated the act he just woke up from. He paused his hands and rubbed the center of his chest with the heel of his hand. There was that feeling again, like he was suffocating just thinking about her and his heart was going to pound out of his chest. He couldn't fathom how much it meant to him that she'd just let him relive the sex they'd had at the bar that night. He hadn't expected to feel so… appreciative, so thankful at the same time, he expected that the weight he felt over it would lift, that he'd stop feeling like his heart was being squeezed out of his ribcage.

He glanced at the mikan in his hand and a little smirk lifted the corner of his mouth and his breath stuttered a little as his lungs tightened. Maybe… this wasn't a bad feeling. Thinking about her certainly made him happy.

* * *

><p>Her brain felt foggy as Nami rolled over in the sheets and blearily blinked her eyes. It was still dark, it must be early…<p>

She stopped mid-thought as she realized, with a small glance around the library, that all of the windows were covered. There were blinds, but she'd never actually used them. "Luffy, why…?" She turned to look at the bed, and realized with a start that she was alone. All that was left was the straw hat.

Instantly, a suspicion kindled in her chest, and she shot out of the bed, bare-ass naked, and stumbled towards the window with a cold fear gripping her chest. She yanked the shade open, and was blinded by the light that tumbled into the room.

Shocked, she could tell instantly that it was mid-morning. They had been due to land early morning. Once her eyes adjusted, she could see the tell-tale red sands of Redgrove outside the porthole.

"Luffy!" she screeched in anger, whipping around and grabbing her clothes, shoving her limbs into the correct holes as fast as possible. Dressed, her hair pulled up into a messy bun, Nami burst out of the library and ran down to the deck. It took her less than ten minutes to figure out that they'd all left her here.

To fight her battle for her.

She let out a sound of utter frustration and anger, her eyes flashing, her heart squeezing painfully. They'd left her here to protect her, but she felt so much fear for them that she was going to go insane before they could get back. She couldn't just sit here while her friends were potentially being maimed by their own shadows.

That is, if Watcher could lay a hand on them.

Her crew was strong, but still…

Nami grit her teeth and disappeared into her room, changing into fresh clothes and strapping her Climatact to her thigh. Her heart was in her throat and her mind was working a mile a minute about what she needed to do to ensure all of her nakama survived the day. Jamming the straw hat on her head, she slammed the door to the girl's dorm shut and shot out to the deck.

She stopped dead in her tracks.

Standing less than a foot from her was a giant and dark form, looming over her threateningly. A large grin stretched the shadow face…

Watcher's shadow.

She let out a screech and dove for the opposite direction, but it was too late. Watcher's shadow suddenly shot out a hand, and gripped her shadow in a grip of iron, tripping her up and making her fall flat on her face. She struggled, but it was useless. His shadow dragged her closer, and engulfed her body in the oily blackness. Fighting was useless; shadows didn't feel pain. Striking the shadow body only made the shadow reform. Within seconds, she knew, the shadow would rejoin its body, and she would be teleported to Watcher.

It was an ability of his that he rarely used, due to the amount of energy it took for him to take a living body and pull it through a shadow. In addition, he had to have touched the person in order to have control of their shadow, or the teleportation wouldn't take.

A few miles away, in Watcher's elegant mansion, a dark pool of shadows suddenly gathered on the ceiling of Watcher's personal bedroom. Watcher looked up from the desk, where he was calmly writing a letter to one of the brothel managers.

The brothel where he had recently sent the two girls with which his Nami was so obsessed.

He smiled calmly as a flailing limb appeared out of the inky pool. He sat back in his chair and crossed his legs just as Nami fell through the shadow, and landed with a thump on his enormous bed.

"I'm glad you could finally join me in here, Nami…" Watcher said smoothly as he got to his feet, smoothing his expensive slate-colored suit with hands that glimmered with a few expensive looking golden rings.

Nami pushed herself up on the bed and practically hissed at him. She glared hotly at him and her voice trembled with fury as she said, "How dare you drag me here. How DARE you think you own me. I am a free woman, Watcher. Take a hint: I don't want you." She hurried to get off his bed, almost tripping over herself as she shot off the mattress and pressed her back against the wall. Watcher's shadow hovered ominously behind him.

Watcher, an older man with slicked-back black hair that fell to just below his earlobes and piercing blue eyes that gave her chills, simply chuckled as he slowly approached her. "Nami, I run brothels… do you think it matters if you want to be with me or not? I didn't get my beautiful necklace around you before, but now…"

Watcher's hand suddenly shot out, and he wrapped his large hand around her throat in a flash. Nami gasped and then choked, her hands going up to grip his wrist as she tried to pry him off her throat. Her mouth gaped like a fish out of water as she glared at him with watering eyes. Her body was still littered with cuts and bruises from the last time he put his hands-or shadow hands-on her.

Within seconds, though, he'd withdrawn his hand, and she fell back against the wall, her hand shooting up to feel that a thin metal band was circling her neck. Near the latch, which she couldn't feel any way to remove, was a small metal knob.

A slave collar.

She lost all color in her face, and if it hadn't been for the wall, she might have been unsteady on her feet too. These collars exploded if the slave ever ran away.

Watcher's low chuckle became a victorious dark laugh. He loomed over her like the devil, and Nami stared up at him in horror.

"No…" she whispered, her voice suddenly robbed from her.

"Yes…" Watcher murmured, then reached out, and suddenly pressed a handkerchief to her nose and mouth. "Now, I can't have you blabbing your smart mouth off… I've got to kill Monkey D. Luffy without any of your interference…"

The sharp smell of chemicals quickly faded as Nami's widened and shocked eyes slowly drooped, and her body sunk down to the ground.

A/N:

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2015


	47. Chapter 47

~Chapter Forty-Seven~

At the time of making the plan, it had seemed reasonable to him to leave Nami to guard the ship alone. He didn't want to cause her anymore undue stress over this whole Watcher business. She'd suffered enough by that bastard's hand. Luffy was pulling all the stops to make sure she never had to see him again.

But as he left that morning; the whole crew tiptoed around the deck to make sure that they didn't wake her, he felt… uneasy about it. He reasoned that she was safe; he planned on distracting Watcher to the fullest so he didn't have time to go skulking for her and besides, they weren't docked at the pier. Franky had steered them into a nice hidden alcove surrounded by high cliffs. The Sunny couldn't be seen from town or the ocean. She would be safe.

He had to believe that she would be or else he'd go running back to the ship to check on her.

"Luffy! Where the HELL are we?" Tikka demanded, turning her fiery golden gaze at him. They'd separated from the rest of the crew as everyone set out to get their business done and he, Zoro and Tikka set off for Watcher's estate.

Luffy glanced around, rubbing the back of his neck, "I don't know…" he admitted. This place didn't look familiar at all.

"You've BEEN here before! Shouldn't you know where this guy lives?" she pointed out, one hand on her hip.

"Well, ya, but Nami told me where to go that time…"

"The jackass's house was on the left side of the map, right? So… let's go left," Zoro shrugged, heading towards the left.

Luffy punched his fist into his open palm, "Good plan! To the left!"

Tikka grabbed them both by the back collars of their shirts, pulling them to a halt, "You guys… are idiots. My captain and my boyfriend are morons. God, save me from them," she rolled her eyes skyward as if to beg for some patience, "Left on the map is WEST, guys! And that doesn't really help us if we are passed his estate anyway. We should have brought Nami to navigate…"

"No," the captain turned to her, his tone vehement, "Nami is not allowed to see Watcher. Ever. Again."

Tikka regarded him for a minute before sighing, "Fine. I'll lead the way, okay, gentlemen? We are going this way now."

The estate came into view and the business side of everyone came out. Zoro wrapped his black bandana around his head and Tikka compulsively checked her weapons, her hat with its large feather plume pulled low over her eyes. Luffy's expression was black and vengeful, his body tight with the prospect of fighting. In his mind, he kept reliving his first encounter with Watcher on the docks of the casino island and all he could hear in his head was Nami screaming for him and the terrified look on her face and the feeling of helplessness as he drown in the ocean.

That scumbag was tearing her life apart. He was ripping away everything she wanted, everything she had. Luffy remembered the look on her face when he'd said to her that he was okay with holding off being the Pirate King for a few years to have the baby with her. She'd been so… relieved.

Watcher even took that away.

"No one lives, got it?" he turned to Zoro and Tikka as he bust the lock on the gate and pushed it open with a whine, "No one walks away from this place but us and Watcher is mine." There was no denying the bloodthirsty look in his eyes.

Zoro grinned, "Aye aye, captain," his voice a touch masochist.

No one rushed to greet them. No bodyguards at the entrance, no servants. The trio walked right up to the front door and without preamble, without knocking, Luffy reeled his arm back and punched the door right off its hinges, making a loud entrance. For him in the face of a battle, there was no such thing as subtly.

"WATCHER!" he hollered, "I'VE COME FOR YOUR HEAD!"

* * *

><p>Upon entering the manor, the foyer extended up three stories. In front of them, a large staircase rose up to meet a wall and then curved to their side to two landings on the second floor. On the wall in the center of the staircase, on level with the third level of the house and thus suspended high above the staircase, was a balcony and two elegant doors.<p>

As Luffy burst in through the door, there was a short delay before those doors slowly opened and the clicking of casual footsteps echoed off the copious amount of marble decorating the manor. Watcher emerged from that door, a large man wearing an expensive slate-gray suit. He was well-muscled below the suit, and a dark shadow followed him out, not at all abiding by normal human-to-shadow laws. His slashing blue eyes easily focused in on Luffy, and a small smirk tugged the corners of his lips up.

Sitting on top of his head, over his oiled-back black hair, sat Luffy's straw hat. "Monkey D. Luffy… I've been waiting for you. Such a shame that you survived our last encounter… But on the bright side, I have a new hat, and you've brought my bride right to me! How delightful!"

With that, Watcher calmly stepped to the side, and revealed the limp form of Nami, being held in Watcher's shadow's arms. Watcher glanced back at Luffy with a deadly grin on his face. "Did you know that if I have touched you before, and you are within range, my shadow can drag your shadow straight to me? I know you're familiar with the way the Shadow Shadow fruit can be used, since you battled the previous owner, but I do things a little different, and you won't have the same advantages as you had last time. You'll also notice the beautiful new jewelry Nami's acquired," Watcher indicated the slave necklace. "The key was eaten by my shadow, so you won't get it back unless I'm dead… which will never happen, Monkey D. Luffy. Should her body try to leave this island… I'm afraid she'll lose her head. She would miss me, after all..." Watcher smiled, calmly, and stepped back in place, blocking Nami from view as the shadow receded into the bedroom and placed Nami on the bed.

"Well, I'm so happy to have Nami back that I'll graciously allow you to leave this island, alive, right now. Of course, you'd have to leave my bride with me." Watcher finished, and ominously, the doors behind him creaked to a close, effectively shutting Nami away in Watcher's bedroom.

* * *

><p>The door on the third floor balcony creaked open, snapping everyone's attention to the double French doors. An older man stepped out, dressed in a slate gray suit, very tall and very trim and his ice blue eyes focused right in on Luffy and he knew, right away, that this was Watcher.<p>

"YOU!" Luffy growled, his eyes jumping to the top of Watcher's head, "YOU HAVE MY HAT!" He'd left his hat with Nami, like he always did before an epic fight. No one… NO ONE touched his hat unless he gave it to them. And he only EVER gave it to Nami. Or Usopp when she wasn't around, but mostly Nami.

To touch the straw hat was as blasphemous in his book as striking out at his nakama. Absolute faux pas.

But in order for this old Ossan to have his hat…

From behind Watcher came a ghostly apparition of himself, his shadow self, which operated completely under his control and completely independently of his body. And in the Shadow Watcher's arm was a limp Nami.

"Did you know that once I've touched you, my shadow can drag your shadow right to me?" Watcher questioned him, reaching a hand back to touch her cheek, "You'll also notice her new jewelry…"

Luffy's eyes flickered to Nami's neck and his heart – which was already beating rapidly in black rage – dropped into the pit of his stomach. A slave collar. The last time he saw one was at Sabaody and he saw some guy get nearly blown to bits when he tried to run away. Not pretty.

"I… will kill you. I will KILL you, Watcher!" he shouted as the Shadow disappeared behind the doors, taking Nami with it. He was beyond angry; rational thought blew right out the window. His heart raced as his adrenal gland went on overload, his lungs stuttered. A clever concoction of panic, unadulterated rage and a hankering to protect Nami and a wash of failure that he didn't do it well enough because clearly, she was here, facing this madman again, washed over him to the point where he couldn't think straight, couldn't see straight. A growl started rumbling through him and his whole body practically rippled with energy.

He felt someone, Zoro, lay a hand on his shoulder, "Luffy, you need to calm down and think this through or you're gonna do something stupid…"

Luffy shrugged him off viciously, "Don't, Zoro," he snarled, his patience nonexistent. He reeled his shoulder back and stretched his arm to grab the railing of the third floor and faster than the human eye could track, he launched himself up, snapping, literally, like a rubber band. His other arm came back and curled into a fist, whipping out to lay a solid punch on that bastard.

Suddenly, he was gone and Luffy's fist slammed into the wall, leaving a sizable hole with some deadly intent behind it. He latched onto the sheetrock, crouched like a tree frog and tracked Watcher. Damn it! That fucker was fast. He went after him again, snapping fast, his body lithe and light. Every time he thought his punch would land, it seemed that Watcher was faster and he noticed that he was melting into shadows at the last minute.

"Did you think it would be easy to fight me?" Watcher laughed as Luffy perched on the railing, his eyes flickering around, "You may have experience with the Shadow Shadow Fruit, but everyone is a little different…"

"Don't lecture me! Fight me, you idiot!" Luffy shouted. There. To the left. He whipped his arm out, this time, giving Watcher a good Gum Gum Gatling, his arms moving so fast it looked as if he had hundreds of them.

In an afterthought, Luffy realized that had he not been so flipping angry that it clouded his mind, he could have used his Haki to predict Watcher's movements. He certainly would have been able to see what was coming.

His momentum suddenly came to a grinding halt and he was whipped around and slammed into the floor, hard enough to crack the expensive marble. His head swam, but he looked up to see that Watcher had a grip on his wrist. Nami's warning came back to him in a rush. _Don__'__t let him touch you! If he touches you, he owns your shadow__…_

"Did I not tell you, Straw Hat? Contact means I can have your shadow… surely you knew this already?" he released Luffy's wrist and his arm snapped back to anatomically correct size. He watched, infuriated, as the shadow under him morphed and stood up, independent of his body. His shadow self grinned at him, a flash of white teeth and a glint of red eyes. It cracked its knuckles and stretched its neck, spookily reminiscent of what Luffy himself did right before he got serious.

"How will you do, Straw Hat, against your own power?" Watcher laughed as Luffy's shadow self attacked him, throwing a Gum Gum Pistol straight at Luffy and sending him flying into the far wall.

"Luffy!" he heard Zoro shout and the click of swords being drawn.

"I think not, Roronoa Zoro! I did my homework, you see. I have just the right partners for you and Mihawk's daughter there," Watcher smirked and clapped his hands. Two people came out of the doors on the first floor; a behemoth of a man with a equally behemoth sword in his hand and a smaller woman who looked quite light on her feet, "I believe that Tango and Rosy should be more than enough to take care of you."

Luffy slid down the wall and landed in a crouch, just in time to dodge his shadow, who cracked the floor with the punch meant for him, "Gum Gum WHIP!" Luffy growled, kicking his leg up and crashing it down directly on the shadow.

And his foot… went right through it. The shadow shook itself and pulled itself together, shadowy threads stitching back together like an injury mending on high speed. Luffy growled and evaded the next attack – a whip kick like he just did. How was he supposed to beat up his own shadow? His eyes flickered to Watcher, still wearing his hat. Watcher controlled the shadow. If he could break Watcher's concentration…

A/N:

Begin the EPIC SHOWDOWN!

One Piece belongs to Shonen Jump and Eichiiro Oda. We thank them for their genius and giving us characters to torture. The script is ours.

Credits:

Luffy: Jesachi

Nami: Goldensomething

Sub-characters: Combined Effort

Copyright 2011-2015


End file.
